


Sigils of the Night

by BinaryAngel



Category: Dark-Hunter Series - Sherrilyn Kenyon
Genre: Blood, Cunnilingus, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Evil Fabios, F/M, Sexual Tension, Smut, Vaginal Fingering, Very slight mention of something gorey, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-20
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-12-17 22:14:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 43,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11860698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BinaryAngel/pseuds/BinaryAngel
Summary: I'm prefacing this chapter with a heads up.There is mention of familial death to cancer in this chapter.No big details or descriptions, but still.





	1. New Home, New Start

It was the job offer that got Sisika Campbell to pack her bags, kiss her mother and Texas goodbye, and move to a single bedroom flat in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her choice had nothing to do with the colourful and cryptic dreams or coincidental signs pointing towards the location. No, it was the prospect of being well paid for doing what she loved in a highly reputable parlour. It was the pay raise, the offer of her own chair, and all the health benefits she could ask for in a job along with her new boss being an accommodating angel and securing her a primo flat suited to her tastes, within a short walk to the parlour and well within her budget.   
  
Sisika would have been a fool to turn down the opportunity. She was more than happy to leave the mystic crap to her mother and her charms and witchy baubles. At twenty-seven she had long outgrown playing witch with her mother, grinding up herbs and calling to gods that never cared to answer. There was only headaches and heartaches down that route which had caused the young woman to hang up her broom, so to speak, years ago. Much to Rochelle Campbell's disappointment.   
  
"Did you cleanse the flat?" Her mother's voice sounded tinny over the phone, evidence the storm back home was mucking up the connection. "Did you put up the sigils? They're in your essentials box."   
  
"Momma," Sisika sighed as she sliced open the aforementioned box labelled in her mother's tidy cursive. 'Essentials!' the box proclaimed, but the contents hardly met muster. Oils, dried herbs, her old mortar and pestle, divination stones that had only spelled out nonsensical riddles, and other witchy stuff. Everything Rochelle felt her daughter might need to continue the practice of witchcraft and everything Sisika had been more than willing to leave behind. Yet she found herself plucking the round embroidered sigils out of the box to hang up. She may not be into the witchcraft any more, but they brought a sense of home to the unfamiliar flat. "Sigils going up now. Because they're pretty. Just that."   
  
"Sissy, sweetheart," Oh no. She knew what the softness in her mother's voice meant. Sure enough, her mother started dredging up things left forgotten. Things left buried in the small Texas town she had been raised in. "I know you miss Luc and Rick-"   
  
"Enough." Her tone as firm as possible, she shut that conversation down as quickly as her mother had dredged it up. Now was not the time. There would never be a time when she wanted to hear those names or face those memories. The slam of the wooden frames of the sigils sounded pathetic against the emptiness of the apartment that suddenly pressed in around her. "I'll call you back later. I'm tired and I've got a lot of unpacking to do, plus my boss wants me to drop by to get acquainted with the parlour."   
  
"Uh huh." Rochelle Campbell could see right through her daughter's retreat for what it was, even from another state, and they both knew it. Thankfully the older woman sighed in defeat and let the subject drop. It was a dead horse the woman had beaten time and time again. "Alright. Don't push yourself too hard and call me when you can."   
  
"Will do, momma." Sisika released the tension that had tightened her body with a sigh of her own. "If I don't call tonight I'll ring you up when I wake tomorrow. Take care and enjoy the storm for me."   
  
"Oh, I will." Beneath her mother's chuckle she could hear a shuffle. Then the rattling clink of stones against the scratched hardwood table they used to have family dinners at. A familiar, soothing sound. Sisika could almost see the light of the chandelier hanging above the table glinting off her mother's rainbow hued divination stones. "Sissy, I..."   
  
"Momma?"   
  
"Nothing to worry about." Rochelle paused, the clinking informing Sisika that she was cleaning up the stones. "I love you, baby girl."   
  
"Love you too, momma. We'll talk later."   
  
The unpacking did not take Sisika long. She and her mother had lived a simple enough life, which meant the amount of boxes to cut open and empty was a low number. One box for the kitchen, one for the bathroom, two for the bedroom, and one full of books for the living room, and she was done. She would have to make her bed and put away the clothing left in a pile upon the dresser the flat had been furnished with, but that could wait.

Of course, there was the ‘Essentials!’ box, but Sisika scoffed at it and nudged it into the corner.

The shower beckoned her and she snagged a towel before stripping down and jumping into the warm spray. As decently priced as the flat was, she was more than pleased to discover the water pressure was nothing short of divine. She would really have to remember to thank her boss again for hooking her up with the place. What more could a girl ask for than a deep tub to soak in and a shower capable of blasting away soreness and the day’s grime? Maybe she would dip into that ‘Essentials!’ box after off to see if her mother had stashed any lavender oil in it. A nice, sweetly fragrant soak at the end of the week sounded like heaven.

Refreshed and clean, Sisika shut off the shower and wrapped the terrycloth towel around her before making her way back into her bedroom to rifle through her clothing. Although she was not reporting in for work, the prospect of meeting her boss was enough to make her dismiss more comfortable t-shirts in favour of a flattering peach blouse that went well with jeans that lined the curves of her legs before flaring out to make tugging on her ankle boots easy.

A swipe of eyeliner, a gentle sweep of lipstick, hair brushed free of tangles and pulled up into a ponytail, and she was ready to head out the door. She snagged her keys from the book by the door, shoved her wallet and phone into her back pockets, and left the flat behind to traverse the rapidly darkening streets of New Orleans.

Inked Bones, the stylised sign proclaimed above the parlour shouted with its sugar skull logo. Crimson velvet curtains blocked the view of the interior, but the neon OPEN sign hanging in the door let Sisika know there was life inside. The tattoo and piercing parlour had odd hours, compared to those she worked at back home, but nothing she could not handle. Open in the evening and late into the night, she would just have to adapt to being semi-nocturnal.

“Welcome to Inked Bones!” An orange haired woman behind the counted greeted her as soon as she stepped foot within the parlour. Gemstone studs glinting in her ears and along her right eyebrow, the woman somehow looked at home in the Victorian Gothic furnishings of the business’ waiting room. “Our pros are busy at the moment, but you’re welcome to have a sit and browse through our catalogs.”

“Oh, I’m good.” As good as her coworkers were supposed to be, Sisika was not the type to get anyone’s work inked onto her body. Only her own. “I’m actually here to see Tainn. He in?”

“Right here,” The voice was every bit of delicious as the tall, picturesque male that stepped out from the back through a brocade curtain. Long, oil-slick dyed hair cut with a half-shave draped over his shoulders. Silver glinted from snakebites in his plush lips as he smiled and a black KISS shirt clung to a body that could easily grace the cover of a magazine as it would a person’s bed. Dark eyes slid over her in a languid sweep before coming to a rest on her face. “Oh, please tell me you’re Sisika, because I’m always down to more eye candy in my shop.”

“Sisika Campbell in the flesh.” She gave him her best smile, the one that had gotten her on the good side of many warm-blooded males in the past. “It’s great to finally meet you.”

“And you!” He was at her in a moment, shaking her hand warmly before spinning her around to the orange haired woman at the counter. Draping a heavily tattooed arm over her shoulder, he presented her to the clerk. “Mandy, this is the artist I snagged from Texas that I told you about!”

“Really?” Renewed interest brought a bounce to Mandy’s step as she abandoned her post to rush forward to circle Sisika like a hawk. “I’ve seen your work. Good stuff, clean lines. Definitely glad to have you onboard. You bareskinned?”

“Hardly.” Ducking free of Tainn’s hold, she lifted her blouse a few inches to bare some of the complicated ink that swirled and flowed over her back and onto her sides.

“Lickable.” Mandy praised with a wink and a playful grin, making Sisika wonder if the woman was entirely straight. “Just remember to wear something that shows off some of that work when you’re on the clock. The more ink shown the better!”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She could understand why showing her ink would be necessary. It went a long way easing the minds of nervous customers. Bearing at least some of the ink opened her up to their questions and helped overcome any fears they may have of the needle. “Anything else I should know about?”

“If you’re ever on the floor when Big Ted comes in, don’t give him your digits.” Mandy offered without explanation, not that Sisika cared for any. She had no intention of giving anyone her number. “Oh, and if he causes you any trouble let Tainn or me know. We’ll handle him.”

“I can handle myself, but good to know you’ve got my back.” She gave them both a grin. “Okay, so I can’t stay long. I still have to get some food in my pantry and some Z’s in my life, but can I see my chair?”

“Of course!” Tainn motioned Mandy back to the counter before steering Sisika towards the brocade curtain he had originally appeared through. The curtain revealed a hallway studded with colourful doors. She craned her head, examining the art and names on each one they passed before he stopped in front of the only bare, black door in the line. “This is yours. Feel free to decorate the door however you like. Just plop your name somewhere in the mix of it all.”

“Sweet.” Excited by the prospect, Sisika’s fingers itched for a pencil to start sketching out the possible designs that would soon mark the door as hers. Tainn chuckled at her before opening the door and giving her a gentle push inside.

The Victorian Gothic theme of Inked Bones ended within the workspace itself which had a clean, well-lit industrial vibe. Sisika beelined to the chair, checking the dials and buttons that would allow her to position her customers just right to give as much comfort as possible while having them sitting or lying for her tattoo gun to paint art into their flesh. Top of the line, better than the one she had to share with another artist at her old job, and the shelves lining the wall were fully stocked with everything she would need. Plus it even had a cubby sizable enough to fit her kit and a full sized, three-segment mirror for her customers to examine her work when she finished with them.

“I take it you like it?” Tainn asked from the door, smile on his handsome face as he watched her dart around the room and ruffle through the supplies. “Like the door, feel free to give the room your personal touch. Just leave some space on the walls for any pics your people might toss your way.”

“It’s perfection.” Sisika might not be the hugging type, but she had the urge to do just that as she took in the room, already imagining what it would look like soon. “When can I start?”

“A week.” Her boss answered with a shrug. “Should be enough time for you to spruce things up and get everything sorted to your tastes. You know our times. You can come in an hour before opening to work on the door, or just after closing to do it. The room itself you can work on anytime in between.”

“Awesome.” She could do it. A week was more than enough time to go ham, especially with the anticipation of getting to work fueling her. Turning to Tainn, she could not hide the smile that stretched ear to ear. “I know I thanked you before, but I can’t thank you enough. For the job, the apartment, everything! This is just the greatest!”

“No need to thank me,” The bashful smile suited him well. “We’re a family here and we take care of our own. If you need anything, just shoot me or Mandy a text. We’ve got you, girl.”

After saving Mandy’s number into her phone, she wished the pair a good night before heading into the star-studded night air with a bounce in her step. She felt giddy, excited in a way she had not been in years. Too eager to start sketching for her room and door, she dismissed the earlier plan of filling her pantries and checked the GPS on her phone for the nearest place that served food at this hour.

A bar with good ratings, a live band, and a boast of authentic Cajun cuisine led her down the street and up the block from Inked Bones, past a small store she purchased a notebook and pencil from, to the doors of Sanctuary. Flashing her ID at the blond bouncer out front, she was let into claim a set in a decently lit corner and begin her rough drafts of the imagery she had in mind.

As excited as she was, she missed the whispers in the wind and the spiralling energy of the city that hinted at what was to come. Whispers of magick that had never turned its back on her, even after she had turned her back on it.


	2. Protection

One would think a bar would not be the best place for food or to get sketching done, but Sisika returned to Sanctuary even after picking up the groceries she kept putting off. None of the workers seemed to mind her taking up her spot in the corner, filling up the booth’s table with her sketchbook, pencils, and colour pencils. Maybe it was because she always ordered a meal to munch on while she works and drinks to keep her glass from emptying while she worked. 

It only took her a couple of nights to decide on the design for her door and her room at Inked Bones, but inspiration knew no hour and she found herself sketching new designs for her own tattoo catalog. 

“Hey Sisika.” The blonde beauty that stopped at the table waited a beat for her to finish her line and look up from her work. One of the Peltier’s that owned and worked the bar, she had been among the first to greet her once she started showing herself to be a frequent customer and had made a point to greet her at some point during the night. “You ever eat at home, girl?”

“I do, but it’s not as good as what you serve.” Sisika jabbed her pen towards the nearly empty bowl of red beans and rice she had ordered for dinner. “You guys won’t be able to keep me away if you keep serving that level of tasty.”

“Oh no, whatever shall we do.” Aimee shared a laugh with her before plopping her elbows down on the table and peering down at the open sketchbook. “I’ve been meaning to ask, but you’re an artist, right?”

“No, what?” Faking surprise, she glanced down at the art supplies taking over the table and gasped. “Who put this crazy stuff in front of me? How dare they!”

“Who knows?” The blonde giggled and tapped the page. “I can’t say I’m a fan of abstract work, but your stuff’s pretty stellar. I really liked that watercolour one you did yesterday.”

“Stroke my ego some more and I might come here one day with a painting for you.” Sisika replied with a grin, making a mental note to try to do just that one day when she had the time. As much as she loved being paid for her art, it was always a joy to see someone who appreciated it. Besides, it could bring more customers her way. “Heck, come into Inked Bones one day and I’ll hook you up with a Sisika original.”

“Not big on the tattoo thing, but I’ll keep that in mind.” Someone in the kitchen called her name and Aimee sighed and straightened. “Work calls. You have a good night, Sisika.”

“You too.” Sisika gave her a wave before turning her attention back to the sketchpad. She had drawn up a decent number of sketches for her catalog as well as the one in the waiting room of the parlour, especially if she brought in some of her older work. Abandoning the sketching for the time being, she flipped through the book to make note of which ones to duplicate for the catalogs.

It was then that she noticed a theme in the seemingly random art. Sigils always formed the basis of her work, a throwback to her witchcraft days, but it was strange to see some repeating themselves in the sketches without her even realising.

Protection against danger.

A chill went down her spine and she snapped the book shut, but she could not block out the swirling lines of the sigil that had been painted behind her eyelids. It had to be a coincidence, she told herself. The design was a nice one and fit in well with the colours and fluid tapestry of nature she used in her art. That was it and nothing more.

It was not the powers that be reaching out to warn her of something.

‘You can’t ignore signs like that, Sissy.’ She could almost hear her mother’s voice, irritated and heavy with concern. The same voice she had used shortly before the incident that had her hanging up her broom. A warning she had brushed off once before. ‘Pay attention!’

“It’s nothing.” Sisika told herself as she cracked open the sketchbook again. Slowly she flipped through the pages with a wary eye, taking her time to trace each line she had penciled and coloured. Twenty four sketches and by the time she reached the most recent sketch dread had wound its way into her heat. The sigil had appeared, somewhere within the art, on every single page. 

If this was a sign, the powers that be were not hinting. They were downright screaming at her.

“Nope.” She drained her glass and wished she had ordered something a little stronger. As soon as she got home she would shuffle the sigils scattered throughout her flat. Put the protection against danger one in a place where she would not see it day after day. “It’s all bullshit.”

Completely devoid of an appetite, Sisika motioned over one of the waitstaff and requested a to-go box. As she waited for the box she set to work collecting her pencils and colour pencils, neatly sliding them into their proper places in her folding pen holder, and tried to turn her thoughts towards work itself rather than the sketches. She could, and would, put the whole mess behind her. Tomorrow night was her first official workday at Inked Bones and the last thing she wanted was to overthink the stupid sigils.

“Heading out early?” The male that approached her was one she recognised. A quick glance to the tattoo, she confirmed that he was the one more often than not stationed at Sanctuary’s door. “Usually you’re hanging around until last call.”

“Yeah, well, I work tomorrow so I might as well try to get some extra sleep.” She shoved her pencil roll into her tote and closed her sketchbook without looking at it. It too joined the roll inside the tote. “Dev, right?”

“That’s the name.” He grinned at her.

“If you’re here who’s watching the door?” She smiled at the waitstaff who returned with her to-go box and set to work shoveling the remainder of her food into it. Her appetite might be missing for the time being, but like hell was she leaving behind good food she had already paid for.

“Cherif should be standing in for me. Feel free to say hi.” His gaze left her, locking on a woman who peeked out from behind the bar. The way his eyes lit up made it clear that the woman was someone very special to him. “Gotta run. Catch ya later, I’m sure.”

“Sure, I’ll say hi.” Sisika closed her two go box and tucked it carefully into her tote before standing. “Later.” 

Although she was already aware there was another male with Dev’s handsome face, it was still a bit surreal to stop outside Sanctuary and take in the sight. Just as tall and well built, she allowed herself a moment to appreciate just how good looking the twins were. Unfortunately, they were identical and if it were not for this one missing Dev’s tattoo, she would have no way of telling them apart.

Well, Dev smiled. This one wore a frown that bordered on threatening and had an energy that put her on edge in a way that made her shuffle in place, torn between staying or leaving.

“Dev said I should say hi. Sisika Campbell.” She offered him her hand which he eyed for a moment, but made no motion to shake it. Rejected, she moved the limb to her hip and lifted her chin defiantly. “Oi, no need to be rude. Gonna have to introduce myself to ya’ll sometime or another with how often I keep coming back here.”

“Don’t care.” Rude. How Dev and Aimee could be so friendly and this one the opposite she could never understand.

“Gee, would it kill you to show some manners?”

“Probably.” The corner of his lip quirked up slightly in a half-smile that did not reach the blue of his eyes, but it made something within her flip. 

Damn, what was with this town and its gorgeous people?

“I’ll definitely keep that in mind.” Sisika grinned up at him, her irritation at his lack of manners fading with the hint of humour in his expression. He might be the jerk of the Peltier clan, but he was still a Peltier underneath all that. “Welp, I should be going. I’d say it was nice meeting ya, but you’re a bit of an asshole.”

“Feel free to never talk to me again.” 

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Oh, she would do the exact opposite. “Later, grumpy.”

The door open as she sidestepped to walk past him and another familiar face stepped out. Surprised, her eyes dipped to his arms to check for the tattoo but saw none. A third one? Triplets? At least this one seemed nice enough, offering Sisika an apologetic smile as if he knew his identical twin was being a hardass. He turned to his brother and motioned to the bar with a sharp jerk of his thumb.

“Get going, Remi. We don’t need you scaring off our customers.”

“You sure about that? Might do us some good to have a handful less.” Remi, apparently, glanced towards Sisika and caught her eye. There was only a second or two before he looked away and disappeared back inside.

“If that was Remi, that must mean you’re Cherif, unless there’s another one of you I’m unaware of.” Sisika found herself staring at the door and had to shake her head to clear it and refocus on the male she was speaking to. “Sisika Campbell. Don’t worry, he didn’t scare me off.”

“Actually, there’s four of us. And yeah, I’m Cherif. Pleased to meet you.” Again Cherif wore an apologetic smile, making her wonder how many times he had to smooth over issues Remi’s abrasive personality caused. “Sorry if my brother was rude. He’s like that with everyone.”

“No worries. At least he’s cute.” She shrugged her tote higher on her shoulder and gave the Peltier a cheeky grin and cheekier salute. “I’ve dealt with worse anyways. So, have a good night.”

*

She drew in a number of curious customers to her chair with shorts that bared the thorny garden winding around her left thigh and shirts that bared a strip of skin above the hem of her shirts to hint at the ink beneath. A number were men who were more interested in flirting than getting inked, but she managed to talk a handful of them into getting some work done.

Most of her clientbase were women, drawn to the vibrant colours she used. Some came in for new ink while others came in to have her add colours to already existing work. 

For the most part she was left to dither around the shop helping Mandy greet customers and keeping the place tidy. An unnecessary task, Tiann and Mandu assured her, but one she was more than happy to do. Busywork had never bothered her before and it certainly would not bother her now that she was being so well compensated for her time.

Work helped put the protective sigil out of her mind, but when the shop turned quiet she found her mind returning to them. Her mother was no help, naturally, rarely letting the topic rest for the first week after she slipped up and mentioned it. Rochelle insisted that Sisika bone up on her sigils which was the only thing she could do to ease her mother’s worries and get her to shut up about it.

“Heading out.” Sisika paused by the counter, rapping on it to pull Mandy’s attention from her phone. “That cool?”

“Course.” Mandy offered her a distracted smile. “It’s still dark out so be careful on your way home.”

The short walk from Inked Bones to her flat had quickly become one of her favourite parts of living in New Orleans. The twilight of the city wrapped around Sisika in a cloak of sweet fragrance that carried the faint chill that foretold autumn’s approach. It was past the time drunks left the bars and earlier than most started their day and the dusky purple barely touching the eastern edge of the sky informed of dawn’s approach.

Switching to nocturnal living had been all too easy with pleasant nights like this where the peace of the city embraced her.

Yet it was not peace that caused her to pause on the doorstep of her complex. Something made her hesitate to go inside and she threw a glance over her shoulder. Nothing seemed out of place, but there was a heavy feeling in her gut that something was wrong. It was a sensation that made her skin crawl and lured her away from the safety of her home to follow it back into the night.

Sure enough she soon heard the sounds of a fight. Without an ounce of hesitation Sisika broke out into a run, following the noise further down the street and into an alley. Halfway down the alley a lone bulb flickered sickly yellow light above a graffitied side door, illuminating and twisting two figures fighting deeper within the alley. A fight between a blond and a redheaded male, one the redhead appeared to be losing badly judging by his sluggish movements and the pained noises.

A memory came to Sisika in that moment. Years ago, when she was just a bratty teenager, she remembered sitting on the edge of their dining room table as her mother cleaned and bandaged a scrape on her cheek. ‘The easiest way to win a fight,’ Her mother had said. ‘Is to know which ones to avoid. Might not be the cool thing, but there ain’t any shame in saving your own hide, Sissy-girl.’

Tossing an apology towards her mother, Sisika searched the nearby area for a makeshift weapon. Wrapping her hands around the neck of a bottle left broken and forgotten in the mouth of the alley, she drew up her courage and threw herself into the fight. Neither had expected someone to join the brawl and it was the power of surprise that knocked the blond away from the redhead and gave her the space to plant herself between him and his victim.

It was not in her blood to run when someone else’s hide was on the line, especially when every instinct in her was clamouring for her to help.

“Don’t you have some dime store romances to grace the covers of, Fabio?” As short as she was, Sisika held herself tall, eyes narrowed as the blond found his feet again and turned  to her with a nasty snarl. The wan alley light glinted off unnaturally long canines that warned her to be on her guard. There was something intensely wrong about the man. “Hey, it’s okay if you don’t wanna run off. I’ll happily fuck up your model-pretty face if you’re keen on sticking around.”

Fabio laughed at her and and she felt her personal badass points draining away. How insulting was that?

“Oh, you’re cute.” He moved too fast to track, closing the distance between them and knocking the bottle out of her hands. His fingers closed around her throat and her feet left the ground. “Shame I don’t have time for a snack. Feisty bitches like you always go down so sweetly.”

“Fuck off!” Creeped out and already feeling her lungs burn for air, Sisika lashed out with her feet. Her boot hit something solid that only made the male laugh, but the second landed true and he doubled over with a howl of pain. Suddenly free of his hold, she dropped to the ground with little grace and scurried backwards - right into the redhead who was struggling to his feet.

“Thanks for the assist, but you really should be running.” Despite the slick evidence of blood staining his black shirt, he was quick to put himself between Sisika and Evil Fabio. A heroic image, she thought, ruined by the way he wobbled. 

“Thanks, but no thanks.” She pushed herself onto her feet, grimacing when her hand came into contact with something hot and slick. Gross. As soon as she got home she would shower until the water ran like ice, but for the time being the sensation gave her an idea. “Hold still for a second.”

Without giving the redhead time to protest, yanked up his shirt and began smearing the liquid over his flesh. A swirl here. A line there. A well placed dot there. Although the shape was shaky from the adrenaline running through her veins, she could have drawn the protection sigil in her sleep.

Sisika was not sure what happened next. Evil Fabio screeched and dove towards them, only to be sent flying through the alley and into a dumpster. Leaping to his feet, his eyes found Sisika’s, the evil promising a return, before he turned tail and ran. The marked redhead started after him, only to crumble halfway to the alley’s mouth. 

“Shit man, let him go.” She raced to his side and was swatted away as she attempted to help him up. Closer to that one lightbulb she could better see the cuts that littered his body and stained it with blood. “Dude, you need to see a doctor. I’ll call an ambulance and-”

“No.” His hand caught her wrist in a near bruising grip, only loosening when she hissed in pain. He released her and stumbled his way to the mouth of the alley. Leaning heavily against the wall, he sucked in a breath as he eyed the horizon. “I’ll be fine. I think.”

“Fine, no hospital.” He probably did not have the insurance for it. Or he was into some shady shit. Who knew someone’s reason for avoiding hospitals. She quickly caught up to him and slid her arm underneath his, taking most of his weight. “But you’re slow. At least let me help you get to wherever you’re going before you pass out.”

“I-” He swallowed as he looked east, his face twisting into a grimace. “Fine. Do you know Sanctuary, the bar? Just help me there.”

“Um, yeah.” A strange enough place to go, but she could see the Peltier’s helping an injured stranger. They set off, hobbling down the street, pace slow but faster than it would have been if she had not insisted on helping.

When they neared Sanctuary he directed her towards the still shadowed alley and out of the light of the rising sun. Figuring he knew better than she did, she followed his instructions to a door she thought might have lead into Sanctuary’s kitchen. It took her a minute to help him sink to the ground opposite the door and it was on her to bang and try to stir the possibly sleeping people who lived in the building adjacent to the bar. Hopefully the sound carried or there was someone still cleaning up.

A click and the door swung open, revealing the face of one of the quads. His eyes moved over hers, pausing on the blood that coated her hands and smeared up along her side before darting past her to the redhead wheezing behind her. When his eyes swung back to her they were cold and he shoved her aside on his way to help the redhead up and inside the building.

“Will he be okay?” Sisika moved to follow the pair into Sanctuary’s kitchen but hesitated when the injured man’s rode up, revealing the bloody smears of the protection sigil she had painted on him. 

No, she needed to get away. She needed to be anywhere but there.

“I’ll, uh, leave him to your hands. I’m sure ya’ll know how to deal with this.” Her eyes moved to the Peltier male’s tense back. “I don’t know what’s going on here and I don’t wanna know. I helped, that’s all, and now I’m outtie-five-thousand. Take care of him, Remi, but please keep me out of whatever shit is going on here.”

“We’ll see about that.” He paused to glance back at her, eyes conveying surprise before narrowing with suspicion. “Go. Before I change my mind.”

“Right. Going.” She backpedalled further, grabbing the doorknob as she went and slamming it shut between them.

Sisika turned on her heels and ran home as if the dogs of hell were hot on her heels. She barged into her apartment and made a beeline to the Essentials! box in the corner, ripping objects out and chunking them across the room with a screech of the toxic emotions boiling up within her. The scent of oil bottles, broken and spilling over her wooden floors, rose up to choke her along with the deafening din of her divination stones scattering from their bag.

She wanted no part of whatever trouble the magicks of the world was trying to pull her. She just wanted to live in peace. She just wanted to forget. Yet as she dragged a bloodied hand through her hair and turned her back to the box, struggling to calm her breathing, she knew she would not be able to escape this time.

The stones. The nonsensical, puzzling stones were perfectly clear. 

There was no escape for her this time.


	3. What's your poison?

”Are you sure it was Sisika?” Aimee worried a paper napkin to shreds that drifted down into her lap. Across from her, looking less than pleased to be there, was a deeply frowning Remi made further uncomfortable by his sister’s clear distress.

“Positive.” Like he could forget the sight of her. The dewey tan of her skin smeared with blood, eyes wide, and heart pumping hard enough he could practically feel it within his own chest. Once tidy ponytail gone loose and messy, leaving black hair to curl around her face and plaster to her cheek.

There was no real way of knowing how much she had seen or what exactly had gone down. Fern had been too injured to do more than give him a quick recap as he escorted the Dark Hunter down to a sun-proof room where he could rest away the day and his injuries. The redhead had insisted she had saved him, claiming that if he believed in angels anymore he would consider her to be one.

If it were not for the sun still being up, Remi had a feeling Fern would go find her, injured or not. 

“I think someone should check on her.” Aimee’s voice pulled him out of thoughts that was only worsening his already sour mood. The blonde had risen from his seat and was shaking the remains of her napkin into the wastebin. “The daimon that got away shouldn’t have been able to go after her with dawn, but I’d feel better if I knew she wasn’t hurt.”

“Do you even know where she lives?” If any of them would know her address, it would be the charming female who was the closest any one of them was to being Sisika’s friend.

“Not really, but I have an idea.” She dropped back into her seat and pulled her phone out. Fingers flying across the screen, it only took her a moment to load up a map of the city and zoom in on Sanctuary and the surrounding area. “I remember her telling me her flat’s in walking distance of the bar and her work, so-”

“Enough,” Remi flinched at the way his voice sounded. He hated snapping at Aimee, at leveling his glares and letting his anger find her. Aimee was the best of the Peltiers and no one liked seeing her distressed, even more so after she mated and started having young of her own. “I get you’re worried and you like her, but we don’t know the first thing about her.”

For all they knew, last night could have been part of an elaborate trick. What were the chances of a pretty little thing like Sisika stumbling across Fern and saving him in the nick of time before the daimon or the sun ended his immortal life? Her cozying in with them during her visits to the bar, freely sharing dazzling smiles and playful jibes.

“She’s not that kind of girl.” Aimee seemed so certain of that and the glare she tossed his way stayed his tongue from saying any more. “I may not know her well, but she’s a good person.”

“Whatever.” Guilt at upsetting his sister soured his mood further and he turned away from Aimee. The entire situation had him feeling restless and he began pacing the length of the room, debating about darting out the door to get away from her and his circling thoughts that kept returning to Sisika’s late-night appearance.

“Got it!” Aimee lifted her phone triumphantly and waved it to draw back Remi’s attention. “There’s a complex in between here and Inked Bones. It’s gotta be where she lives. “It shouldn’t take me long to find hers and-”

“No.” Remi was quick to snatch the phone out of Aimee’s hands, balking at the idea of her going out on her own. Doubts and fears rose up within him, strong enough to smother the urge to wipe the frown off his sister’s face. It was too risky to let her go. It was too soon to tell if Sisika could be trusted and after what Fern had said, Aimee could be walking into danger if she went. “You’re not going.”

“But someone has to check on her! She could be injured-”

“I’ll go.” The offer surprised them both and the two shared identical expressions of confusion for a second before Remi’s face stiffened to hide his emotions. “She drew something on Fern and it blasted back a daimon. We don’t know who or what she is and until we do, we have to play it safe.”

“Fine, just…” Aimee sighed and tugged her phone back from his hands to forward the complex’s address to his phone. “I get you don’t trust her, but trust me. She’s a good person.”

*

After spending the better part of the morning crying and another part fishing shards of broken oil bottles out of her feet with a pair of tweezers, Sisika decided early on to call in sick. She should be exhausted, unable to keep her eyes open, but sleep refused to come. Scrubbing herself raw in the shower did not help. Cleaning up the mess she had made of her floor had not helped. Eying the witchcraft tools left on her small dining room table did not help.

Even the smallest wink of sleep denied her.

[To: Tainn; Mandy] Not feeling hot today. Need to take a sick day. That cool?

Her hands shook as she sent off the text and she nearly jumped out of her skin at the rapid chirps indicating several replies hitting her phone one after another.

[From: Mandy] Boo! You Suck! :(

[From: Mandy] I got You. Feel better soon!

[From: Mandy] Txt if You need Anything!

It was habit that had her drawing up her contacts list and scrolling down to her mother’s phone number, yet her thumb hovered over the green button that would ring the woman. If there was anyone who could explain what had happened in that alley and what she should do next it would be witch extraordinaire Rochelle Campbell. 

Sisika allowed her phone screen to go dark and dropped the phone to its fate of being lost in her comforters. Her mother would worry over her well-being, perhaps even drop her work and drive to New Orleans to help her. As much as the comfort of her mother’s hugs and cooking tempted her, she could not bring herself to burden her.

She was three years shy of thirty. A grown ass woman. A Texan! She could handle whatever life threw her way. 

A knock at her flat’s door drew her out of bed. With a huff of irritation, Sisika fished an oversized shirt out of her dresser and tugged it on to cover her nudity on the way towards the door. Whoever was on the other side seemed content to knock again, insisting on her presence. She slipped a bit on oil she had missed in her earlier cleaning spree and made a mental note to get it up later, but made it to the door without falling.

At first the sight of the tall, gorgeous male on her doorstep broke her brain. She literally heard something pop in her skull and had to check to make sure her think pudding was not dripping out her ears.

“If this is about last night, I told you I don’t want anything to do with it.” Her mother would have popped her for the lack of manners, but she made quick moves to slam the door shut in the man’s face. His frown shifted, quirking into a partial smile as he blocked her from shutting the door with a solid, muscled arm. Sisika grimaced as she pushed against the door, testing the strength, only to give up with a huff of defeat. “Fine, you’re clearly not g.t.f.o-ing so might as well come in and have your spiel, Remi.”

His eyes followed her as she made her way into the kitchen. What had begun as a casual glance to check for any injuries had turned into something more primal when he had seen the length of curvaceous legs a pinup would envy. The ‘I <3 Texas’ shirt hung loosely off her frame, baring one shoulder, and coming down to about mid-thigh. Somehow she toed the line between innocently vulnerable and wickedly sensual.

“What’s your poison?” He almost missed her question, attention arrested by the sight of her stretching to reach a box of tea from the upper cabinets just shy of her reach. The motion did wonders to her calves and lifted the hem of her shirt just enough to bare the lower swell of her plush rear.

Just enough to make his mouth water and body heat with the realisation that the shirt was the only thing Sisika was wearing.

“Nothing.” He turned away from her with a grunt, eyes darting around the kitchen for something to keep his mind off the near naked woman and his body’s reaction to her. A splotch of colour in the corner, just above the wastebin, drew him across the room. Embroidery done in a rich blue against an off-white background, wound with a simple wooden frame and hung up on the wall. He reached out to trace the silken threads, remembering clearly the messy, smeared one he had seen on Fern’s back. 

“It’s a sigil, a symbol used in magick.” After defeating the height that kept her tea away from her, she had set a cup to heat in the microwave and turned to see him studying the sigil. The same one that had been haunting her and the same one she had used the night before. Eyes locked on Remi’s back, hopped up onto the counter and smoothed her shirt down over her things. “That one means protection against danger.”

“What are you?” The question caught her off guard, as did the sharpness of his blue eyes when he turned to her. He was in her bubble in the next moment, hands planted on either side of her hips on the countertop and nose inches away from hers.

“Nothing? Well, no, not nothing.” Heat rose into her cheeks and she leaned back as far as she could go, the back of her head coming to rest against the cabinet but not giving her enough space. Her heart jumped in her chest and she mentally kicked herself for the rise she was getting out of her nearness. This kind of shit always did turn her to puddy. “I am, no. Was, I was a witch. I’d say you wouldn’t believe me, but Evil Fabio had fangs and you don’t look surprised by this revelation so…”

“Evil Fabio?” Again, that subtle hint at a smile that threatened to melt her appeared before he covered it up with a growl that had a worse effect on her suddenly no longer dead libido.

Right, because now was definitely the best time for her libido to remember she was a woman. Damned thing had gone catatonic and had refused to wake on the few illicit affairs she tried in the past five years, but now that the grumpiest man to every so handsomely grump was in her face it decided to wake up? Excellent timing. Whoever crafted hormones were a Grade A asshole.

“Speaking of Evil Fabio… How’s the redhead doing?” Bringing up the male she had helped put a damper on the heat infusing her body. “He was pretty banged up.”

“Fern’s fine.” Remi stepped back, reminding himself why he had come there. “How was it that you just so happened across that alleyway?”

“Well, we’re already in the realm of freaky shit so…” Sisika lifted a hand and gave it a twirl. “I was ready to go in and crash out for the night when I just felt all kinds of wrong. Now I’m usually one to ignore all the magick mumble jumble, but some things you just can’t ignore. So I just went with it and boom, there they were.”

The microwave dinged and Sisika hopped off the counter, only to immediately regret it. Although the damage done to her feet was minimal, suddenly dropping her weight had sent a spike of pain through her body and nearly caused her knees to buckle. Worse yet, she let out an embarrassingly pathetic yelp in front of one of the hottest men she had ever met.

Remi was quick to scoop her up and deposit her rear back on the counter. His hands skimmed over her legs, leaving hot waves of gooseflesh, before he lifted her ankles and examined her feet. Fingertips ghosted over the flesh, sliding between the cuts and it was all she could do to resist kicking him. She slapped her hand over her mouth to smother her giggles but the look he threw her made it clear he still heard.

“You were wearing boots last night. What happened?” Recognising there was nothing he could do for her feet, he released her and took a step back. 

“I had some bottles that broke in the living room.” Embarrassment flooded her veins. It had been a bonafide tantrum that had led to the minor injury. “Oil bottles. Slipped in the glass when I tried to clean it up.”

“No wonder this place reeks like flowers.” And no wonder he had not picked up on the scent of blood. 

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t really up to airing out the place.”

“I can smell that.”

“Har har har.” She leveled him with an unamused look. “It’s not that bad.”

“Says you. I’ve got a sensitive nose.” Remi flicked her nose and chuckled at the way her face screwed up in response. Catching himself, he drew back and ran his fingers through his hair. This was not how things were supposed to go.

He did not like this. Feeling at ease with anyone, especially some strange witch whose allegiance was questionable at best.

“Remi?” The concern in her voice sent something warm pooling within him, further underlining his unusual reaction to her. “You okay there, grumpy?”

“Aimee was worried about you.” He retreated further from her. “The daim- blond who attacked Fern, your Evil Fabio, might reappear. You see him or anyone who looks like him steer clear. You’re out of your league with those bastards.”

“I can handle myself.” Sisika tried to read his expression, but he turned away from her. Whatever friendliness he was showing her was suddenly gone and replaced with the cold grump she recalled meeting at Sanctuary’s door.

“No, you can’t.” Remi left the kitchen and cursed under his breath when he heard the patter of her feet as she slid off the counter and hurried after him. Her hand caught her sleeve and he snarled, flipping her around and pinning her to the door. “Listen here, I don’t give a shit about you, but Aimee’s got it in her head you’re a good person which is the only reason why I’m here. Watch your ass and if you think, even for a second, you can waltz into my home and cause my family grief I’ll gladly rip your throat out.”

Pinned against the wall, Sisika’s flight or fight instinct left her gaping at the male. Logically speaking, she should be scared or pissed off. She should bite his head off or knee him, but instead she felt the sparking heat of desire welling up at the feel of his hard body pressed against hers. Never before could she recall ever wanting to kiss someone as much as she wanted to kiss Remi in that moment and, judging by the way the stormy ocean of his eyes dipped to her lips, the feeling was mutual.

He pulled away from her as if she were on fire, shoving her away from the door, and left her reeling as she stared at the door he had slammed shut.

What the ever fiery hell?


	4. Figure Something Out

When sleep finally claimed Sisika, it filled her rest with dreams that faded with the evening light streaming in through her bedroom window. The haze claimed all and the warmth of coffee further distanced it from her. She could vaguely remember art spiralling and slashing through the night sky, painting messages she thought she knew but the words did not join her in the waking world. 

Remi had appeared in her dreams. She was certain of that, although she was not sure why he had shown up. Perhaps it was because she had been mulling over his visit before she went to bed. The image of the art, sparling and with a life of its own, winding around him stuck in her mind. The way it curled around his wrist before collecting in his palm had meant nothing, but the visuals were striking nonetheless.

“Note to self,” She mumbled into her coffee as she shook the cobwebs out of her head. “Do not order pasta from that shop again.”

Her phone chimed.

[From: Tiann] feeling better

[To: Tiann] Ya. right as rain. Be in today.

[From: Tiann] u dont have to push urself if ur not sure

[From: Tiann] we can handle another nite w/o u

[From: Tiann] ur health is v important u gotta take care of urself

[To: Tiann] I’m fine, boss. Promise. Good to go!

[From: Tiann] in more ways than 1

[From: Tiann] if u start feeling V let me kno

Tiann’s texts put a smile on her face as she got dressed for work. The man was collected and intelligent, but his texting reminded her of a teenager with its shortcuts and lack of punctuation. What could easily be annoying somehow came off as endearing coming from her handsome, kind boss.

“Sisika!” Mandy flung herself across the shop as soon as Sisika stepped foot inside Inked Bones barrelling over a display of jewelry in her eagerness to pounce on the raven-haired woman. Orange hair tickled her nose as Mandy buried her face in Sisika’s cleavage. “Thank god you’re back!”

“Hey, I was only gone for a day.” Her face heated up with embarrassment and she awkwardly patted her coworker’s head. Dark eyes shifting to the downed display, she could not help but laugh at Mandy’s exuberant greeting. “Come on, it was just a stomach bug.”

“Yeah, but you left me with the sausage party!” Mandy peered up at her with a pretty pout that almost made Sisika feel sorry for calling out. “And Big T was soooo glub. Really. It was almost cute in a really pathetic, kicked puppy kind of way.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad!” Sisika wiggled free of Mandy’s hold and turned her attention to righting the display. Thankfully the jewelry inside were kept safely in place on their hooks and the glass undamaged otherwise clean up would have been a pain. “I had an appointment with Miss Roulett yesterday. Did she reschedule or did someone else ink her?”

“Rescheduled.” Mandy darted back to her post and flipped through the appointment book to drum her fingers underneath a line of chicken scratch that even a doctor could not read. “She’ll be here three days from now at eleven-thirty for her inking. Sent along her best wishes that you’ll feel better soon and insisted you be the one to ink her. Wouldn’t have anyone else.”

“Ahh, what a sweetheart.” Sisika leaned against the counter to examine the appointment book. Childish doodles and colourful stickers decorated the margins and even within the lines. Every other line was written in a different coloured gel pen without rhyme or reason. There were even faces drawn next to what might be the customers names, an indication about how Mandy felt about the individual.

How anyone could make sense of the mess was something Sisika could never understand.

“So, what exactly does my night look like?” She gave up deciphering the appointment book and looked to Mandy for a translation.

“Walk-ins only. Everyone else rescheduled for later or chose a different chair.” Mandy flipped back a few pages and tapped along a mess of doodles. “And Tiann wants you to clock out early tonight and tomorrow, to give you the heads up. He was pretty firm about that.”

“I work with mother hens, I swear.” It was heart-warming, really. A stark contrast to the cold, professionalism of the parlour she had worked at before. “Okay, I’ll be in my room. Holler if you need me.”

“Wait, before you go!” Mandy stepped out from behind the counter and opened her arms wide. “The queen of the front desk demands another hug and one more motorboat of those luscious tits of yours.”

“Your oh-so-humble request for a hug as been reviewed by the council of Sisika Incorporated and accepted.” With a laugh the women embraced, their giggles turning to squeals when Mandy indeed motorboated Sisika’s chest.

“This kind of behaviour is wildly inappropriate for a business.” Tiann’s voice drew their eyes to the back where he had stepped through the curtain separating the front room from the workrooms. “I might need to write you both up for this.”

“T the T?” Mandy asked.

“T the T!” Sisika and Mandy broke apart only to rush towards Tiann, pinning him between them and tickling his ribs. They kept up their attack until tears filled his eyes and he begged for forgiveness, swearing to never write them up for their baltant displays of sexual harassment.

“That’s what I thought.” Mandy and Sisika highfived over Tiann’s head as he bent over double to catch his breath. “Bitch thinks he’s the boss of us but we showed him!”

“I am the boss.” He sucked in a breath and gave them both frown that would have been more effective if his cheeks were not flushed and his eyes sparkling with amusement. “You two might just be the death of me.”

“Only time will tell.” Sisika gave his arm a gentle pat before breezing past the male. “Going to my chair now. I’ve got work to do and equipment to clean before the first drunkard rush!”

The night was a rather relaxed one. The drunkard rush had brought in a handful of customers. A few were there to get something or another pierced, and and the rest flooded into the chairs for ink. At one point Sisika had a pantless man in her chair demanding a stylised dragon on his thigh while his drunken frat brothers watched and hooted.

One frat boy yanked up her top while she was wiping ink off his friend’s thigh, which earned him a boot to the shin that had the group laughing. Other than that the night went like a breeze and before she knew it Tiann had planted his butt on her chair and was overseeing her as she cleaned up her equipment.

“It’s only midnight,” She protested, casting him her best pout that only had him crossing his arms over his chest and raising an eyebrow at her. Like, ‘How dare you try that with me?’ kind of pose. “Tiann, I feel a hundred percent fine. I don’t wanna cut out early.”

“Not budging on this, Sis.” Tiann’s expression softened with a smile. “I know you feel fine, but we’re not risking a relapse. It might’ve only been a stomach bug, but I’d rather be safe than sorry when it comes to your health.”

“It’s not-” She cut herself off, remembering surreality of the night that had called her to call in. Work had been busy enough to put it to the back of her mind, to almost convince her the lie about a stomach bug was the truth. There was no way she could tell Tiann the truth, but as long as the lie about her being sick stood he would fret. Could she stand that?

“Sis, please.” He slid off the chair and crossed over to where she stood. With gentle hands he took her tattoo gun from her hands and set it on the counter. A moment later his cool, slender fingers covered her own. “It’s just gonna be for the next few nights. If you’re worried about hours, we’ll schedule in some more for you, okay?”

“I-fine.” Her eyes slid away from his worried face to his hands. Against the tan of her own skin, she noticed for the first time how pale her gothic boss was. “You win. Just let me finish cleaning up and I’ll clock out like a good girl.”

“Good.” His hand left hers to lift her chin, dazzling her with a bright smile. “I know it’s a thorn in your side, but I don’t like seeing any of my employees sick.”

Sisika sucked in a breath of air as soon as he left and let it out. Her hand went to her chest, pressing against the flesh and bone as she tried to command her heart to stop jumping with a mental word. It took her an embarrassing amount of time to regain her equilibrium and return to the task at hand. Instead of cleaning her equipment to prepare for the next walk, she just cleaned it all and packed it away.

Once her room was spotless and the chair thoroughly wiped down, she poked her head in the other occupied rooms to say goodnight. Mandy stopped her at the door and stuck a Tootsie Roll pop in her cleavage before slapping her on the rear and letting her leave.

It was a mere thirty minutes after midnight that found Sisika strolling down the street towards her home, the shadows of the night rising up like ominous spectres. Restlessness pierced her skin like daggers of ice and she walked past her flat, needing something more than the quiet of her apartment even if she scurried past dark alleyways as if Evil Fabio would dart out and grab her if she lingered even for a second.

It was pretty pathetic, especially for a Texan girl weaned on schoolyard fights with this farmer’s son or that mechanic’s kid. 

One glance at the bouncer outside Sanctuary told her Dev was working the door. Thankful for the boring, but easily identifying tattoo she gave him a wave before heading on it and making a beeline to her regular booth. She had made it about halfway through when a hand closed on her wrist and tugged her out of the crowd. Forced to follow along the petite blonde beauty who had captured her, she was led behind the bar and into the kitchen.

“We need to talk about the other night,” Aimee said as she continued to lead her through the kitchen and a set of doors that attached the bar to the Peltier’s personal property.

“Oi, what part of ‘I don’t want anything to do with that’ do you guys not understand?” Sisika dug in her heels but her friend was stronger than she appeared and barely slowed. “I didn’t tell anyone about that shit, if that’s what you’re worried about-”

“That’s good, but that’s not the problem.” She manhandled Sisika into a room and pushed her down into a worn cushioned chair. A moment later she was gone, leaving Sisika alone and less than pleased with the situation.

“Stubbornness must run in the Peltier bloodline.” Rising from the chair, she rushed to the door only to find it locked from the outside, effectively trapping her in. Frustrated with the kidnapping, she gave the door a quick kick to vent her anger before returning to the chair and dropping into it with an unladylike curse. “Should’ve just gone home but noooo, I had to be all twitchy and wanting to be around people. Goddamn socialising will be the death of me!”

Restlessness had her out of the chair after a minute or so of waiting for Aimee’s return. She paced the length of the room before setting to pulling off the cushions of the chairs and couches inside the den. Two dollars and forty three in change later, she had found two sticks of still-wrapped gun and a pocketknife. She dropped down onto the pile of cushions she had created and began to stack her findings on the coffee table, trying to create as tall of a tower as possible.

When the door finally unlocked and opened, she had managed to create a wobbly tower about three inches tall. An impressive feat considering the coins preferred to teeter over than stand on their ends - a fact only slightly remedied by pressing their edges into the gum that somehow still had some give after being squished between cushions for gods only knew how long.

“What did you do in here?” Aimee took in the naked couches with laughter in her voice before her eyes zeroed in on Sisika in her partial cushion fort. “I leave you alone for a few minutes and you wreck my den.”

“Consider this revenge for the kidnapping.” Sisika flicked one of the quarters holding up her tower and watched the coins scatter. When the last coin stilled she stood and dusted off her hands to face the blonde and the four men who followed her in.

She recognised three of the men. Two of the four quads and Fern, but the fourth male was a new face - one who did not look to be a Peltier. Still she gave them all a salute in greeting.

“Yo grumps. Good to see you again.” Sisika shot the grumpy quad a smile before her eyes slid over the other one. No tattoo, so not Dev. That meant Cherif or Quinn. Her eyes landed on Fern, darting over him for any sign of the injuries he had sustained in the fight with Evil Fabio but there was nothing - not even a bruise. Odd. He either had killer concealer or a Wolverine-like healing factor. “Fern, right? Bit surprised to see you up and about.”

“Interesting.” Aimee’s mutter could barely be heard, but Sisika caught the curious glance she shot towards Remi before her eyes returned to their ‘guest.’ The blonde woman crossed the room, snagged one of the cushions to shove back into its place so she could take a seat. “You’ve met Cherif before, I believe. The other handsome fellow there is my husband, Fang.”

That much was apparent with the warmth in Fang’s eyes when he looked at his wife. The man barely spared Sisika a glance as he joined his wife, perching on the arm of her chair. It was clear the man thought the world of Aimee, something that made Sisika smile despite her irritation at being locked up in a room against her will.

“Hellos all around,” Sisika waved at everyone before rising out of her cushion fort, kicking clear a spot and chucking a few towards their original places. The other males moved in, righting a haphazardly placed cushion and taking a seat. All except Remi who leaned against the door as if she were about to run. “I’m not going to run. Ya’ll got enough force here to stop me if I even tried, so get your sweet ass over here and sit down with the rest of this kidnapping party.”

When Remi made no move to take a seat, even with eyes of the room on him, Sisika decided to take matters into her own hands. She straightened up the cushions of the unmanned sofa before crossing over to the door. There was a second when their eyes locked, his unfathomable, before she gave him her biggest grin. Snatching him by the wrist, she pulled him onto the couch and pushed him onto the cushions.

“Sisika…” There was a worry in Aimee’s voice that did not go unnoticed, but still went ignored.

“There.” Sisika waited a second for Remi to right himself before plopping down into his lap to keep him in place. “Now that everyone’s sitting, can we talk about how kidnapping is against the law?”

Each and every one of them, save Fern who merely looked amused, gawked at her as if she had sprouted a second head. Their eyes darted from her face to Remi’s and back again and she could practically see the buffering symbol in their eyes as they digested what they had witnessed. 

She had no way of knowing how unusual this behaviour was and how rare it was to see the antisocial and quick-tempered male she had made a seat out of passive. With her back on him she missed the way he avoided their gazes and the way his fingers flexed without knowing where to rest them. She did not miss the slow smile that crept across Aimee’s face and the small nudge she gave her husband.

Weird.

“Anyways, this isn’t a kidnapping.” Fern cleared his throat and offered Sisika a winsome smile. “First of all, I’d like to thank you for your help. You might not know it, but you really did save my life.”

“No problem, pretty boy.” Was that a growl she heard behind her?

“Actually, it is a problem.” Fang was the one who spoke, his deep voice commanding the room’s attention. Even Sisika sat up a little bit straighter when he spoke. “We had a chat with someone about this, trying to figure out exactly what happened in that alley, and something was raised to light.”

“The man that attacked Fern might come after you.” Aimee’s eyes were apologetic and her face grim with concern. She reached for her husband’ hand and gave it a squeeze once their fingers intertwined. “And he might send more. The magick you used… A friend of ours believes the daimons will want to gain it for themselves.”

“Daimons?”

“Evil Fabio and those like him.” Remi’s voice was a delicious gravel in her ear and she felt a flood of heat through her.

“Okay then.” She waited a second, wondering if anyone would explain further. When no one spoke she rolled her eyes. “Are they a gang or something?”

“Or something.” Fern was the one who answered, leaning forward in his chair and pinning Sisika with a serious look. For the first time she got a good look at his eyes and was taken back by how dark they were. Were they black?

The redhead spun a difficult to believe tale of a race created by a god, beloved and powerful, only to be cursed by the very same god after the vicious murder of his mistress. Spurned by Apollo, the daimons were forbidden to walk in the light of the sun lest they fried. Night became their solace, but their curse went deeper than turning them nocturnal. They were cursed with the fangs of a predator, turned reliant on the blood of their brethren to survive, only to die a slow, agonising death on the day of their twenty-seventh birthday.

The only way around the unfair death was to devour the soul of another person, thus turning the Apollite into a daimon, but the souls could not be sustained within the daimon’s body. Over time they died, a horrific end for the poor meal, and the daimon needed to hunt again and again to continue their life. Powerful souls were like caviar to these daimons, lasting longer than the typical meal and even granting the daimon the powers that belonged to the soul.

Long story short, Evil Fabio and his ilk were dangerous soul-sucking vampires with one hell of a grudge.

“Maybe he didn’t get a good look at me.” It had been late, after all, and the lighting in the alleyway was not that great. It was not like she had distinctive looks with her brown eyes, black hair, and looks that was not too plain and not too beautiful to be anything remarkable.

“Predator eyesight.” Fern’s dark gaze slid to Remi and then back to her face. “Trust me, he saw you.”

By following her instinct and the mystical flow of the world’s energy, she had walked right into the danger she had been warned of. She had all but painted a target on her chest. 

“Fuuuuuck.” Sisika collapsed back against Remi and threw her arm over her eyes. She could feel the beginning of a stress headache digging nails into her skull. “Fuck me. What now? What do I do? I can’t fucking live watching the shadows expecting someone to stick a straw in me and sip on my soul.”

“It might be best for you to stay here.” Aimee piped up. “The daimons won’t attack you here. They can’t. Sanctuary is a limani, a safe zone. It’s probably the safest place for you in New Orleans.”

“What about my job? My flat?” She dropped her arm to peer at the group watching her, her stomach twisting at the depth of shit she had waded into without knowing. “I’m not losing my job because some fanghead has a boner for my goodies. And I am not living here, no offense, and leaving my fucking awesome flat to collect dust.”

“We’ll figure something out.” Aimee glanced at her husband before offering Sisika a sad, patient smile. “For the time being, we’d really like it if you stayed here. At least for a few nights, until we figure something out.”

“What about my job?”

“You could call in.” The nasty glare that Sisika sent Aimee’s way made the blond swallow and change her tact. “Or, if you insist on working, we could have someone escort you. At least until we can figure something more permanent out.”

It was not the best situation and the phrase ‘figure something out’ felt flimsy against the weight of the threat looming over her head. For a second she wished she had ignored the pull in her gut that had led her to that alley, but a glance towards Fern burned that away. No, she did not regret saving Fern. As much of a headache as her life had suddenly turned into, she would not have traded someone else’s actual life for it. 

“Okay.” Sisika sucked in a breath and put on her best smile, a false bravado with her world being swallowed around her. She felt Remi’s hand come to rest on her hip, fingertips sliding just beneath the hem of her shirt and offering a grounding warmth she was grateful for. “Okay, I can work with this.”


	5. Attraction

Remi was bristling, a low growl vibrating the air around him as he scrubbed the dishes that had piled up in the sink during the powwow in the den. Curious eyes glanced over him, but those who came in and out of the kitchen steered clear of the volatile bear. They tried to keep their eyes averted and out of his radar.

Aimee watched him like a hawk whenever she was in the kitchen. Her sudden interest in him was a result, no doubt, of Sisika’s stunt in the den. He could only guess at his sister’s thoughts, but he was well aware of the sight he had made. That witch was trouble and he knew it the moment she touched him, yet he had given in to her whims without a fight and was rewarded and cursed by her soft curves in his lap.

The move had been so brash, so unexpected, that it had rendered him temporarily stupid and now he was kicking himself for letting it happen.

“Hey Rem,” Aimee sidled up alongside him, leaning her hip against the counter and looking every inch the friendly sister. His hackles rose and if he did not have his hands buried in a sink full of soapy water he would have beat feet in the opposite direction. “Got a second to talk?”

“No.” Remi did not hesitate to shoot her down and made a point of rattling the dishes in the sink louder than neccessary to illustrate how busy he was and how little he was willing to talk.

Aimee was undeterred.

“Oh, that’s okay.” She made a show of examining her nails and present the image of casual innocence. Too bad he knew her far too well to be fooled. “You can listen while I talk.”

Crap.

“So Sisika will be staying with us for a while, at least until Ash or Savitar can be reached…” Which could mean as little as a few days and an indeterminate time. The two powerful beings never let them down, but were not always available for reasons they did not always share. “It’ll be nice having another bit of estrogen in the hose while it lasts. Plus she gets along fairly well with everyone here so far.”

“Uh huh.” Although he was hanging on her words, Remi could not sound less interested if he tried.

“Course, with her still going to work, the whole escort thing proves to be an issue.” Since she was standing between him and the sanitiser that would rinse and dry the dishes with alternating blasts of hot water and hot hair, she took the soapy dishes he had scrubbed within an inch of its porcelain life and slid it into the rack. At least she was making herself useful, but he was not the biggest fan of her tone. 

It was the same mischievous tone she had used so frequently when they were kids. The tone that generally led to a sound scolding from their parents.

“Fern was more than willing to play escort. Rather adorable, really, the way he admires her.” She watched him from beneath lowered lashes for any reaction and despite himself he gave one away, shoulders tense as he fumbled with the pot he was scrubbing. “He thinks she’s pretty great, obviously, and who can blame him?”

“Guess that settles that.” Remi practically shoved the pot into his sister’s hands. What little patience he had was rapidly decaying beneath her verbal assault. Worse yet, he was quickly running out of dishes to use to scrub away his growing frustrations.

“Ahh, not really.” Aimee grinned like the cat that caught the canary or like the bear that caught the other bear. She settled the pot into the sanitiser, taking a moment to let her words sit before turning back to him. “The scheduling no good with his patrols being what they are, especially with her getting off early for the next few days. Shame that, he was pretty bummed.”

If Fern wanted Sisika, he could have him. At least, that was the sharp thought running through Remi’s mind that only amped his need to retreat and punch something he could not hurt. It was not like the Dark Hunter’s goddess-given rule against relationships were followed, as evident by the growing number of warriors who had settled down and gotten married in recent years. 

He really wanted to punch someone.

“I don’t care about any of this.” Remi dropped the dish and scouring pad to turn on his sister with a glare that would have promised violence if it had been anyone else on the receiving in. Aimee merely smiled up at him, not at all contrite and more than a bit triumphant. “So tell me, dear sister, why are you chewing my ear off about it?”

“I know you care.” Aimee lifted her chin and planted her hands on her hips. Her words were ice down his spine and he itched to run away from them. “I know you, dear brother. Even if you’re not willing to admit it.”

“Just come off it and get whatever fool idea you’ve got out of your head.” Remi turned away from her and yanked the clean dishtowel from its hook to dry his hands off with more force than was needed. His blood boiled and he needed to take a walk. He needed to get away from people, away from Aimee before his temper got the better of him and he said something to hurt her. “I’m done talking. I’m going on break. Alone.”

Anyone else would have let things be. Anyone else would have let him leave without another word, but not Aimee. 

“Fine, fine.” Her tone was knowing and he knew that she was smiling. “She’s gotta hit her flat before work to change so be up and ready to go by nine P.M. And exchange numbers so she can text you when she’s off the clock.”

“Damnit.” Of course he would be sacrificed as escort. It was all likely Aimee’s doing, arranging the pieces to put Remi in close and frequent contact with the artist. Chances were good Fern had indeed volunteered, only for the female bear to remind him of his duties as a Dark Hunter. Fang might even have volunteered, being one of the most adept fighters there, but Aimee had her own goals. His eyes slid to her and he knew better than to trust her smile. “What’s your aim here?”

“What? You don’t trust me?” Aimee’s eyes widened and she huffed in disappointment. She crossed her arms under her chest and put on a pout that worked in the past, but not now. She did not fool her disgruntled brother. “Logically speaking, you’re the best solution right now. You already know where she lives, after all, and you two get along fabulously.”

Fabulously would not be the word he used, but he kept his mouth shut about that. His mind raced for a counter-argument, for anything he could have used to get himself out of escorting Sisika, but with his blood pressure rising as it was he only drew blanks. Aimee knew it too if her widening smile was any indication.”

“Fine.” He relented with a growl. “I’ll do it. For now. Until we find someone else to do it and we will find someone else, got it?”

Remi chose that moment to make his escape as if leaving the room would ensure his words would stick and Aimee would find someone else. He flung his apron in the approximate direction of the hooks by the door and beat feet into the Peltier’s personal wing.

A source of his frustration was knowing Aimee’s heart was only in the right place, as it always was for those she loved, but her aim made him want to scream. It was Sisika’s fault as much as it was his. The sassy, beautiful woman had no common sense to know the boundaries of other people and his dumbass had been so awestruck by her braveness and the softness of her curves he had not pushed her off his lap.

Aimee was playing matchmaker. Maybe she only wanted him to be friends with her newest friend, but he doubted that. She had played him like a fiddle, he realised, with her ‘casual’ talk of Fern’s admiration for the witch, poking at the bear’s innate possessiveness and jealousy.

His sister knew him well and probably saw every little sign confirming her theory in his reaction.

Remi did not need this trouble. He kept everyone at arm’s length for a reason. A nasty side effect from having his heart ripped out and stomped on by the Fates. Having to live with a constant reminder only kept the oozing wound from ever healing, but despite all the looks of pity and the pain, he could not leave his family behind.

He could not open himself up to that kind of torment again.

His world turned on his head when he caught a scent that wafted through the hallways of Peltier house. Something subtle and mouthwateringly sweet. Familiar, but in his distraction Remi failed to place it until Sisika turned the corner and nearly rammed into him.

The witch had taken a shower and was tying off her long, still damp hair in a plait. She had changed clothes, wearing pyjama pants covered in little pink hearts that he recognised to be a pair Aimee used to wear before her pregnancy, and an oversized shirt that hid her luscious curves. When she noticed him her face flushed, but she smiled bright enough to make his heart jump.

The real kicker, the one that made her a truly potent mix, was the fact that her sweet scent was mixed with his own. Something that made his cock twitch and desire to flood his veins.

“Hey grumps.” How could she always tell it was him? Not that he cared too strongly at that moment with the almost bashful way she toyed with the hem of her shirt. “Aimee gave me some clothes to wear but shirt-wise she didn’t have anything. She said you wouldn’t mind me borrowing one of yours.”

He minded. Oh, he minded quite a bit. Sisika smelled too good wrapped up in his scent, wearing his shirt. Instinct pulled at him, tempting him to wrap her up and engrain his scent deeply into her skin.

“It’s fine.” He dug his nails into his palm, hating the way he reacted to her and hating the way her relieved smile lit him up. “It’s only for the night anyways.”

“Yeah,” She released the hem and smoothed down the front of the shirt, temporally hinting at the curves beneath. “I dunno though. It’s pretty comfy so I might end up stealing it if you’re not careful.”

“You could try.” The part of him that liked the way the shirt dipped around her neck wanted her to steal it. His inner bear purred, if a bear could even purr, at the thought of her curled up within his shirt, wearing his scent. “I could get it back from a little thing like you pretty easily.”

“Not if I don’t take it off!” Sisika’s grin was downright cheeky. Cheekier still was the way she punched his arm, not at all afraid of the temper that had others walking on eggshells around him.

“Oh, that won’t stop me.” He stepped forward and, gods help him, he imagined doing just that. Stripping that shirt right off her body. Sisika’s cheeks grew flushed with colour and his eyes dipped to her lips when her tongue darted out to wet them. Her eyes grew molten with undisguised desire and his blood only heated further.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” The purr in her voice nearly broke the flimsy hold he had on his self control, as did the ghosting touch of her fingers sliding against his arm. “I’m heading down to snag some gumbo. You can join me, if you want?”

He wanted to, but gumbo was the last thing on his mind. His appetite had other, more tantalising things in mind. Things he could not allow himself to have.

“I’ll pass.” He tried not to let the disappointment in her eyes reach him or weaken his resolve. Remi tightened his hold on his self control and took a step aside to let her pass. “Enjoy your dinner.”

“I will. You know where my booth is if you change your mind.” Sisika blew him a kiss before continuing down the hallway. She must have known he would watch because she put an extra sway in her hips that made his pants feel tighter than they already did and sink his mood further.

*

On an average night Sisika would pack up and be on her way home well before last call in an effort to avoid the drunken fools spilling out into the quiet of the night. As she watched some of the Sanctuary patrons shuffle, laughing and playfully bumping into one another, out the door she mentally wished them safe travels.

The last time she stayed later than this was when she was twenty-two and dating the bartender in the next town over. It was their one year anniversary and she had driven up to surprise him. The bouncer had let her in with a smile and directed her towards the back where she found her boyfriend stuffing his tongue down one of the waitresses throats. She made him suffer for his crime when she headed to the parking lot and pulled a Carrie Underwood on his Chevy.

Fucking up his personal property might not have been the most mature reaction, but it had done wonders for her emotional health. 

“What’s got you smiling?” Cherif slid into the booth beside her and it took her a moment to recognise him. Had to be him unless he had traded clothing with one of his identical twins. 

“Destruction of personal property.” His shocked expression of her honest answer had her laughing and tipping her near empty cocktail at him in salute. “Just a bit of reminiscing about carving obscenities into an ex-boyfriend’s pristine paint job.”

“Is it safe to assume he had it coming?”

“Oh yeah, he most definitely did.” Her attention moved towards the door where some of the last stragglers were being herded out by Dev and Fang. “I hear it cost him a pretty penny to fix the damage. He’s lucky I didn’t do worse with how angry I was.”

“Remind me to never piss you off.” Cherif chuckled softly. “Hell hath no fury, right?”

“Exactly.” She turned back to him with a wink. “No worries about that. I’m actually pretty easy going. I’ve got a long fuse and it takes quite a bit to set me off.”

“It’s a wonder you and Remi get along so well.” Her questioning hum made him pause and he rubbed a hand against his cheek, nerves starting to get the best of him. “It looks like you two are pretty close. Are you and him…”

“Are we what?” Sisika leaned towards him, pressing him to finish his question. She had a guess towards what he was asking but she wanted to hear him ask since he was waffling about it.

“I, uh, know it’s not my business.” He dropped his hand to the table and picked his nail at a scratch in the wooden top. “But do you two have something going on?”

“Why, you interested?” She sincerely hoped not. Cherif was a handsome enough fellow, as was all the Peltier’s she had met, but he was not really her type. She had a bad habit of overwhelming the quiet, bashful types to begin with and she could not imagine a relationship with him working out even if she was looking for a boyfriend. “Because if you are, hate to break it to you, but I’m not.”

“What?” His cheeks turned red and he shook his head. “No, no. I’m not- Not that you’re not- I just…” 

“Relax.” Sisika held up a hand and he stopped. When she thought he had collected himself she lowered her hand. “It’s all good. Just keeping shit clear.”

“Fair enough, I respect that.” Cherif could not look at her now, but he seemed calm enough. His eyes slid towards the back. “About Rem… He’s a good guy so don’t let the barbs get you down. If you’re interested, try and be patient with him. After what happened with Becca…”

“What happened with Becca?”

“Not my story to tell. I shouldn’t have mentioned it at all.” Cherif turned back to her and gave her an apologetic half-smile. “If you’re not interested though, don’t play like you are. Rem’s been through enough.”

“Gotcha.” The conversation reminded her of the ‘Shotgun Talk’ her mother had with her first boyfriend after the cheating bartender - sans the mention of a sawed off. It was heartwarming to know the Peltier’s had each other backs like this, but it also made her cheeks heat up to know she was in their sights like that.

“I took up enough of your evening and I’ve got some work to do.” Cherif scooted out of the booth and sent her a smile. To her great relief he said nothing more about Remi and her. He wished her a good night before heading towards the back to help out with the cleanup.

Sisika drained the rest of her cocktail and let her head drop onto the table. The conversation took a lot out of her and put her mind in a place it did not need to go. Because of Cherif’s questions and the ‘Shotgun Talk’ she questioned her attraction to Remi. It was something she tried not to think too much about but was suddenly confronted with.

She was attracted to him like a moth to a flame, even if he was a grumpy-pants. The partial smiles he had given her was enough to make her crave a real, full one from him. And the chemistry that had sparked between them in the hallway earlier promised her a restless night of frustration. Wearily she lifted her head, spotting a clock on the far wall with the realisation that she would have to survive an untold number of nights living in the same building with Remi.

Sisika hoped against all odds she could control herself and resist the magnetic pull of the male. A man like him would be too easy to fall for and she could not let herself be that vulnerable again.


	6. Comfort

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm prefacing this chapter with a heads up.  
> There is mention of familial death to cancer in this chapter.  
> No big details or descriptions, but still.

Sisika learned two things her first night at the Peltier House. 

One - although the guest room she had been shown to had a deliciously comfortable bed, sleep was hard to find without her sigils. She tossed and turned, willing herself to relax, but after an hour or so she broke down. Ransacking the room for supplies awarded her a marker, but she had to wander throughout the fairly quiet house in search of paper for something to write on. A half awake Fang, stirred by the sounds of her rummaging around, tossed a memo book at her with a gruff, “Go the hell to sleep.”

She could almost see her mother’s smug grin as she traced out the familiar shape of the sigils onto the paper and found a place to nestle them in a semi-circle around the bed. After that sleep came easily.

Two - losing three hours of sleep because of magical sigils meant nothing when a gorgeous man woke her up with a delivery of fresh, steaming coffee that smelled like heaven in a cup. He was either a good guess or he had asked Aimee what her preferences were, because the coffee was just how she liked it - splashed with cream until it matched her skin, given a spoonful of sugar to take the edge off the bitterness, and topped with a sprinkling of cinnamon.

It started Sisika’s day off on a good foot even if the man in question was surly with her and diverted any attempt at conversation she made. 

Some of the day’s heat still remained in the evening air and traces of the sun still lit up the sky in a hazy navy as they left the Peltier house and started the walk to Sisika’s flat. While she was grateful the already generous family had not wasted their gas, she did wonder why they did not offer. It would make the whole thing far easier on Remi, that was for sure, and safer since cars could mow down Evil Fabios.

As she walked the answer came to her. She watched Remi out of the corner as they walked, side to side and close enough for their hands to brush occasionally. While he avoided making eye contact with her he kept an eye on their surroundings. Her escort was keenly aware of the people they passed on the sidewalks and the darkened alleyways they passed by.

He was sussing out the situation. A smart move, she thought as she caught his eyes lingering on a blond for a moment before dismissing the stranger when they passed by without a glance. If the Evil Fabios were after her they would be prepped for a chance to attack - stalking her, in other words. Walking gave them an opportunity to gauge how badly the daimons wanted her and her power.

The downside of this was that she was afraid to draw him into conversation. He was on his guard and a distraction could prove to be bad for the both of them. An unfortunate matter that left her with a silence that made her thoughts ring loud and her mind circling back to the conversation she had with Cherif before retiring to her bedroom.

‘ _ If you’re interested, try and be patient with him. _ ’ Cherif had said, seemingly unopposed to the idea of her pursuing Remi for something more than friendship. The mention of Becca, whoever that was, only added to the concerns plaguing her. There was a story there she had not heard, but could not ask. Not without throwing Cherif under the metaphorical bus and not without possibly opening up wounds. She knew too well the pain some stories could cause.

’ _ If you’re not interested though, don’t play like you are. _ ’ Had she been showing an interest? In retrospect the answer was a clear yes. She liked Remi, far too much for her own good, and had not been able to resist flirting or making some sort of contact with him.

Sisika needed to rein herself in. For both their sakes.

*

“Who was that?” Mandy pounced as soon as Remi left, eyes locked on the door as if her gaze could lure him back in.

“A friend.” An unsettled feeling sunk into her stomach, but she could not finger the cause of it. She shuffled in place as she, too, eyed the door for a minute before turning her attention to studying her coworker.

What could she say to explain Remi’s presence? There was no way the woman would not notice him picking her up and dropping her off over the next few days, even if Remi never entered the shop. Once something came onto Mandy’s radar it never left. Sisika’s mind twisted and raced to find some explanation that would not reveal her lie about the stomach bug. The truth was out of the question, of course, and the whole insanity about the Evil Fabios best left as a secret.

The less Mandy knew the better.

“He didn’t seem much like a friend.” Dark green eyes zeroed in on Sisika. “Are you okay? really. If he’s causing you any kind of trouble, in any way, you just say the word. You know Big T and I’ve got your back.”

“No, no, no. I’m good.” Sisika threw up her hand shook her head. The conversation was turning in a way she was not at all comfortable with. The concern was heartwarming, but she could handle herself and the idea of someone thinking Remi was a danger to her, some stalker type or worse, did not sit well with her at all. “Don’t let that grumpy demeanor full you. Remi’s a sweetheart beneath the ‘Grr, fuck off!’ vibe he throws off. He’s just kind of socially awkward, ya know?”

“If you say so.” Mandy did not sound convinced but did not say anymore, seeming willing to accept Sisika’s judgement. At least for now. “How’d a sweet little thing like you get caught up in Sourpuss there?”

“His sister is a friend of mine. She asked him - well, more like twisted his arm - to drop me off and pick me up for a little while.” Why? She knew she needed a why. It would have been easier to just play it off as if she and Remi were lovers and she had crashed at his place. The look on Mandy’s face was all too recognisable. The woman was not going to let it rest without some sort of an explanation. “There’s no need, but Aims claim she read some statistics and doesn’t want me walking alone. She wouldn’t take no for an answer, like ever, and we’d thought it best to humour her for a while. At least until she finds some other factoid to focus on.”

“Ahh, I got ya.” Mandy nodded distractedly and Sisika breathed a sigh of relief, only to jump a mile high when her coworker slapped her hand against the counter. “What if- what if Sourpuss’ sister is trying to play Cupid?”

Bless Mandy with her beautiful brain that provided the perfect explanation. One that rang with a little truth now and could serve in the future if Remi’s escorting service had to be extended. 

“That’s probably it.” Sisika did not need to fake the blush that coloured her cheeks nor the irritated sigh that followed. “Sounds like something she would do. ‘Imma hook my friend up with my brother and it’ll be so great and not at all weird - especially if things don’t work out!’ Ugh.”

“It’s always weird when adults play matchmaker.” Leaning against her counter, Mandy’s fingernail clicked against the gel pen she began to roll back and forth. A rare frown graced her face as she chewed over her next words. “Gotta ask… Think you’re friends on the right track or maybe he’s not your type? Do you even like blonds or do you favour brunettes?”

“I don’t really have a type.” Sisika blinked in surprise at the strange questions. What was going through that mandarin orange head of hers? “It’s always been about a person’s heart, to be honest, but it’s all muck anyways. I’m not interested in a relationship. With anyone.”

“Why’s that? If you don’t mind me asking.” The question made Sisika stiffen and squeeze her eyes shut. She had no desire to answer such a thing let alone think about it. “Hey, it’s okay. You don’t have to answer. Sorry if that’s a sore spot.”

“A very sore spot.” A sore, oozing spot that would not heal. “It’s cool. You didn’t know, but I’d really, really appreciate it if you didn’t ask about that again.”

“Deal, deal!” Mandy was quick to agree to Sisika’s sharp words and mimed zipping her lips shut. She turned her hand as if locking up her lips and swallowed the invisible key. The nonsense of it all brought a smile to Sisika’s lips and eased the tension that had sprung up between them. “Never talking about that ever again.”

“Thanks.”

“No bigs.” A comfortable silence fell between them and the tight coil constricting Sisika’s heart loosened a bit. “Hey, question. If you’re not down for a commitment, which is totally cool and not at all something I’m curious about, would you be down for some good, sweaty friends with benefits jazz?”

“Mandy!” Sisika snorted on her laughter at the unexpected and playfully asked query. “I am not answering that! Why even ask? Oh, oh, you’re propositioning me, aren’t you?”

“If I thought for a second that you swang my way,” Mandy pandomined swinging a bat. “Then yeah, I totally would be, but nah. I’m just curious and might know a certain someone who’d probably bend over backwards for the chance to worship you like that.”

“Damn, that’s flattering.” And something she wished she had not been told. There were very few people both she and Mandy knew which meant the interested party had to be a customer or a coworker. Either way, that kind of dalliance spelled trouble. “Don’t know about the whole friends with benefits thing, but I’ll, uh, keep it in mind if I ever have a change in libido.”

“Graceful rejection, but a little undermined by the hesitance.” Mandy scribbled something and held up a post it note as a makeshift scorecard. “I give it seven out of ten!”

“Thank you, thank you very much!” Sisika took a bow to an imaginary audience and blew them kiss. “Thank you. That’s a new record. The last one ranked a three out of seven because my answer was accidentally slapping him with a fish.”

“Ouch.” Mandy crumbled up the post it note and bounced it off the rim of the trashcan. It rolled back to her and she gave it a kick to hide it under the rim of the counter. “How’d you manage that oh-so-beautiful mess?”

“Was sizing up some catfish for dinner at the market when this guy asked me out. Came out of nowhere with it too.” She shook her head at the memory. “Next thing I know the fish slips and I barely keep it from falling, but I’m turning to him at the same time and BLAM! Fish in the poor guy’s face.”

“Love it. So adopting that technique for the future.”

“Be my guest.” Sisika grinned and propped her elbows up on the counter. “Miss Roulett still coming in?”

“Yup. Called to confirm before you got here.” Workmode activated, Mandy cracked open her appointment book and double checked the colourful mess. “Nothing else but walk ins for the rest of the night, but you’ve got a last minute appointment for a piercing. Not your specialty, I know, but it’s Mr Baxter’s kid.”

“Ahh, Baxter.” The man had requested a full-back tattoo from her. A phoenix rising from the ashes done in her style. It had taken a full hour working with him, learning the story behind it at the same time, to finalise the design and they were still not done finishing the inking for the piece. A man who had hit rock bottom that was finally rising out of it. 

Sisika had made sure to include sigils within the design to give him luck, strength against adversity, and courage. 

“Yeah, you know how that goes. Since he’s worked with you, he talked his kid into it too.” Mandy shrugged. “Barring any complications or shenanigans, you’ll be finished up by midnight.”

“And that’s when I have to clock out because of you mother hen’s.” The firm nod she received confirmed that and Sisika sighed. “Fine, fine, but I’ll complain obnoxiously on my way out the door.” 

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The night went exactly how Mandy said it would. Miss Roulett showed up in time for her appointment and, an hour of Sisika’s buzzing tattoo gun later, she was out the door after scheduling next appointment. It was a slow, easy day for walkins. Mostly simple tattoos or piercings and enough downtown for the employees of Inked Bones to fold up paper triangles and compete against each other to see who could sink their ammo in the waistband the most.

Mr Baxter showed up with his sixteen year old kid in tow, a shy young lady by the name of Betalia. While Mandy ran Mr Baxter through the permission paperwork Sisika took the time to run the teenager through the jewelry options as she explained the piercing procedure. Although clearly nervous, Bethalia hung on her words and promised to follow every bit of advice in the care of her new piercing. 

By the time the teenager made it to Sisika’s chair and her belly button prepped for the needle, the story behind the piercing was made known, one that Sisika could understand all too well. Mrs Baxter, recently deceased after a struggle with cancer, had gotten her belly button pierced after having Bethalia and wore her daughter’s birthstone there until the day she died. Bathalia wanted to honour her mother’s memory by wearing Mrs Baxter’s birthstone.

“At least until I have a kid of my own.” Bethalia watched Sisika work, hazel eyes brimming with tears. “I’ll have to get one with two gemstones them, for mom and for my kid. Then when they’re old enough, I’ll tell them all about her.”

“I’m positive your mom loves this.” Sisika’s eyes blurred and she blinked rapidly to try to dry them. Her vision cleared and she double checked the sight and needle was clean for the piercing, giving herself some time to recollect herself. Once she felt steady enough she made quick work of the piercing.

It was after Mr Baxter and Bethalia left that Sisika collapsed on the sofa in the waiting room, pressing her palms against her eyes to try to prevent the tears that threatened to overwhelm her. Without knowing why, Mandy rushed to her side and wrapped her up in her arms. Soothing nonsense was cooed at her while Mandy gently stroked her back as the well broke loose and she cried.They remained curled up together long after Sisika’s tears dried up, Mandy continuing to stroke her back until the raven-haired woman pulled free and wiped at her puffy eyes.

“Thank you.” Sisika took in a deep breath, still feeling shaky from her crying fit. She accepted the tissue Mandy offered her and blew her nose. “That just kind of hit home for me.”

“Want to talk about it?” The question was gentle and Sisika shrugged.

“I was six when I lost my mom. Big C got her too.” She saw the confusion on Mandy’s face and gave her a weak smile. It was not hard to understand the reason why. She had called her mother from the shop once or twice before. “I have… had two moms. Rochelle and Kate. Kate was the mom who gave birth to me.”

“Oh. Damn.” Mandy swallowed and gave Sisika’s hand a gentle pat. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”

“It’s okay. It was a long time ago.” Sisika squeezed Mandy’s hand before standing up and heading back to her room to grab the bag she had brought from her flat. Her coworker followed behind, still wearing that concerned expression. “Hearing the Baxter’s story just, you know, hurt. But I’ll be okay.”

Because Bethalia had found a way to honour her mother. To take a gift her mother had given her, a symbol of the woman’s love for her child, carry it with her, and pass it on to the next generation. It was mature and beautiful beyond the child’s age, but it made Sisika feel like a bit of a failure of a daughter. Here she was, eleven years older, with her back turned to the gift her mother had given her before her death.

Sucked was definitely one adequate word for it.

“Thanks for all this, Mandy. And sorry for blubbering all over your shoulder.”

“Anytime babe. I’ve got your back through thick and then.” Mandy grinned and smacked Sisika on the shoulder. “And I’ll just send you the dry cleaning bill.”

“You totally suck!” Sisika’s pretend outrage had them both giggling until a chime from her phone interrupted.

[From: Sexy Grump] Off work yet?

[To: Sexy Grump] Yup. Just getting my shit together.

[From: Sexy Grump] Be there soon.

With Remi on the way, Sisika hovered in the front room and peered out through the thick curtains covering the storefront to watch for him. The store’s phone rang which pulled Mandy away, a relief more than anything since the woman had been hovering. Thankfully she was still busy with the customer on the other end when Sisika spotted Remi. 

“Heading out.” She blew the woman a kiss which was caught and tucked in a pocket. With a laugh she headed outside just in time for Remi to reach the door.

He took one look at her, spotting her cheeks still red and eyes still puffy from crying, and wrapped her up in the warmest bear hug she could imagine. Sisika melted in the embrace, feeling the tension of the evening flowing out of her as she wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her head against his chest. His scent and warmth pushed the pains plaguing her to the back of her mind and she just allowed herself to soak up the wordless comfort he offered her.


	7. Evil Eye

Sisika found herself telling Remi about her mother’s passing as they walked down the quiet sidewalk. He never asked why she had been crying and had only asked if she would be alright. That was all it took to start her mouth moving and she could not stop herself after that.

She told him about the evenings spent at the hospital, sitting by her mother’s side, reading to her when the chemotherapy sapped too much of her strength to hold the books herself. She told him of the days she helped out around the house, flaking out on friends who wanted to play, so that her mother’s could rest with one less worry on their shoulders. As she talked she found herself remembering things she had forgotten and shared those with him too, like the time her mother had stuck a ‘Kick-Me!’ note to her doctor’s back or the way her mom used to cut her sandwiches into thin strips and called them finger-sandwiches.

“I remember crying a lot when she died.” Sisika leaned into Remi’s side, fingers interlaced with his and took comfort when he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “I thought losing Kate would completely wreck momma then. I was terrified I’d lose her too, but she kept going strong. She still hasn’t found anyone else, but she says she’s fine with her memories and me. Can’t argue with that mushy stuff.”

“Nope. Can’t argue a bit.” Remi understood all too well the pain of losing a parent. He could not imagine facing such a loss at such a young age, especially without brothers or sister’s to lean on. The fact that Sisika faced a loss and yet still smiled, even with tears filling her eyes as she drifted through her memories, heightened his admiration for the woman. “Shame I couldn’t have met Kate. She sounds like a great person.”

“She was, but hey, maybe you’ll be able to meet my momma one of these days.” Sisika’s met his gaze with a smile that made his heart jump. “I’m positive she’ll adore you, even if you are a grumpy pants.”

The roar of an engine and reek of melted rubber shattered the still of the night. Remi reacted quicker that Sisika could process what was happening. One moment she was standing there, smiling up at him, and the next she went down. Pain lanced through her hips and seared her calf where she skinned it against the concrete sidewalk, but it was the dull thud of metal hitting flesh that made her heart stop.

“Remi?” She panicked and scrambled backwards when the car skidded to a stop inches from her body, right where she had stood moments before. The male groaned and she made a move towards him when someone caught her hair and yanked her back.

“He’s not the one you should be worried about.” Sisika was pulled to her knees, pain spiking through her skull as her captor forced her to face him. “Remember me?”

“The original dick, Evil Fabio!” She tried to keep the fear out of her voice as she clawed at his hand to no avail. Her other hand slapped at the ground in desperate search for anything she could use against the daimon. “Hey, how about you let me go and fuck off?”

“Not a chance.” He sneered, pleased with himself to have caught her, and forced her to move. Her fingers brushed against a cylindrical object that had spilled when she dropped her bag, a marker, and she snatched up the not-exactly intimidating weapon.

Forced to rise to alleviate the strain of his hair pulling, Sisika thumbed off the cap of the marker and tried to keep him from seeing as she began to draw. It was difficult enough to write on her leg while trapped in a couch-walk, but he would only make it harder if he noticed. The daimon had already seen once what she could do with a drawing and would take away her only chance to fight back.

“Sisika?” Remi groaned, using the car to help himself get to his feet. The growl he let loose when he saw her made Evil Fabio freeze. “Let her fucking go and I’ll make your horrifically painful death quick.”   
“Fuck, Remi. That’s really hot.” And just what she needed to finish the sigil. Using the distraction she hurried through the final lines and curls of the sigil before Evil Fabio could collect himself and force her to move again.

The moment she finished she felt the lines grow nearly unbearably hot against her skin, pulsing to the beat of her heart. Taking it as a sign the sigil was starting to work, she stepped back as far as she could and her hair slipped free of Evil Fabio’s hold. She grinned as the heat spread over her body and his grabs at her only made it pulse stronger. He could not get a grip on her no matter how hard he tried. 

“‘Freedom’ packs a bit of a whopper, doesn’t it?” Sisika smirked at him, feeling a rush of triumph as she edged further away from the infuriated daimon. Remi’s hand slid off her wrist when she came close to him and she took that as her cue to dart behind him. “Tag, you’re it babe! I’ve got him all warmed up for you!”

Remi attacked with the ferocity of an animal, roaring as he threw himself at the blond soul-sucker. Evil Fabio went down, hard, his head bouncing off the concrete and Sisika almost felt bad for him. Almost, but not quite.

She had no idea how injured Remi might be and how far his anger would get him in the fight, but she was not able to stand idly by and give the daimon a chance to turn the tide of the battle. She turned to the dented hood of the car and got busy drawing.

Sisika did not know what sigils to draw, but she tried everything she knew. Protection against danger, freedom, health, strength. They all became smears on her arm as she wiped the makeshift slate clean again and again.

Both of her moms would kick her ass if they saw her desperately trying to recall sigils she had learned as a young girl alongside her alphabet.

“Ward against… No, I never got that to work. Exorcism? Shit, this ain’t the Exorcist.” She muttered to herself, panicked as her lines grew shakier with each passing moment. Remi and Evil Fabio continued their fight, growls and pained sounds coming from both, and she only grew more frantic when she realised she was hearing less pain from the daimon and more from Remi.

Evil Eye. Despite the only fuzzy recollection of what the sigil looked like, but too desperate to waste any more time, she started drawing the strongest anti-evil sigil she knew. The symbol that still persisted to this day, sold as keychains, necklaces, and bracelets in one form or another. 

The Evil Eye was a big fucking risk and she knew it. One that would end the battle in their favour if she got it right or lead to their deaths if she got it wrong and accidentally powered up their enemy into a near unstoppable powerhorse. With a crude swear she made the last line of the sigil and silently asked it to not bite her in the ass.

“Rem!” He did not acknowledge her call but she was certain he heard. “Slam that bitch on the hood like it’s prom night and he made moves on your girl!”

It took him a moment to gain enough of an upper hand to send the daimon sailing face-first into the hood. 

Sisika felt the impact in her bones, but it was the wave that crashed over her that took her to her knees. It grabbed hold of her and pulled forward with a force that darkened her vision for a terrifying second before light nearly blinded her. It let go and she fell forward, catching herself from face planting, arms trembling in aftershocks. She sucked in a breath, then another, and lifted her face to see the daimon sliding off the hood of the car and clutch his face. 

Sluggish blood dripped from the burned out holes his eyes used to reside in. A sight that boiled the bile in her stomach in the worst sort of way.

“Sisika, come on.” Remi’s voice sounded distant, but she knew the touch of his hand as he grabbed her and yanked her to her feet. “Can you run?”

“I-I can.” She hesitated at first, but felt her strength funneling back into her once she turned away from the injured daimon. Remi’s eyes were unreadable as they moved over her. She gave him a wan smile and snatched up her bag. There were still markers on the ground, but the distant scream of sirens counted them as a loss. “Let’s get the fuck outta here.”

Remi’s hand latched on tight around her own as they ran, leaving behind the scene of the fight before the police could get there and see them. With her flat still being closer than Santuary, Sisika steered him to her door. Her keys were still safely hooked onto her bag, allowing them inside her door in record time.

With the door shot and locked, Sisika’s keys fell from her shaking hands as she fought to catch her breath. She had thought she was in decent shape for her age, but after that run she decided she needed some visits to the gym. The last time she had run that far and that fast had been back during her middle school days when she thought she could be an Olympic track star only to discover that exercising that much caused a lot of sweat and aching legs. 

Remi was a hell of a lot more collected, something that she envied quite a bit. He caught his breath after their mini-marathon almost instantly and his voice was steady as he explained to her who he was texting. Apparently the Peltier’s had friends in all kinds of places, one of which being tied in with the police department that would help cover up the supernatural evidence of the fight to keep the public from discovering the existence of daimons and keep the cops from her doorstep.

A handy thing, that.

Remi’s phone hit the floor and her back hit the door. His lips descended on hers, capturing them in a fierce kiss that stole her breath away and set her on fire. Fingers threaded through her hair, gentle but firm, and angled her head so he could deepen the kiss. He hefted her up with one arm, sliding between her legs as his tongue slid over her lips. 

Sisika parted her lips and he groaned as his tongue met hers in a slippery, passionate fight. She hooked her legs around him, body heat rising as he ground the evidence of his arousal against her. Remi broke the kiss only to assault her neck, all passionate teeth and tongue and meltingly hot suckles that undid her further. 

"Tell me to stop." Remi’s husky voice contradicted her words and urged her to do the opposite. As he ground himself harder against her, sweeping his tongue along the reddened skin of her throat, the idea of him stopping made her ache.

The moment he moved his mouth from her throat she answered him by yanking off her top so fast it nearly ripped. The groan he rewarded her with shot liquid heat through her body to pool between her legs. 

“Woman,” The word was a primal growl as his fingers slid from her hair to cup a lace covered breast. His thumb swept over the delicate embroidery and she sucked in a breath as her nipple hardened beneath his touch. “You don’t want this.”

"Oh yes, I fucking do.” There was no gentleness in her touch when she fisted her hand in his soft hair and guided his mouth back to hers so she could drink in more of his kisses. She nipped his lip and wiggled her hips against his. “The only thing I don’t want is to go another minute without you inside of me.”

“You asked for it.” The passionate blue of his eyes turned dark with starving need. Hands sliding over her body, he pulled away from the door and threw her over his shoulder. With one hand squeezing her thigh, sliding towards the heat in between, he stalked towards her bedroom and likely left a dent in the door which how hard he kicked it open.

Sisika had not realised how much he was holding back until he was on her before she even bounced against the mattress. His passionate touch turned starved, as if he could not get enough of her skin. He kissed her, a peck compared to the earlier depth of his kisses, before his mouth descended to her breasts. Wasting no time to remove her bra, Remi merely shoved it out of the way so he could attack the soft flesh with bites and kisses that had her moaning.

But it was his hands that drove her out of her mind. They moved down, effortlessly undoing the button of her shorts and tugging them down along with her panties. His fingers moved between her slick folds, diving straight to where she craved him the most. He sunk two fingers in deep and his thumb found her clit at the same time and that was enough to nearly break her in the best kind of way.

“Fuck, Sisika.” He groaned against her breath as he began to pump his fingers in and out of her in a slow and steady pace that had her squirming. His tongue traced her aerola, slowly narrowing in to flick her nipple before switching to the other breast. As tight as his pants seemed when he first started kissing her against the door, they were damn near unbearable now that he had her softness beneath him and her scent and taste filling his senses.

He wanted her with a need that frightened him.

His acking cock was the last thing on his mind. He wanted to hear her scream, just from his touch and mouth alone and intended to make it happen. Thumb sliding over her clit, he alternated between curling his fingers as he pumped and scissoring when he had them as deep as they could go. Remi’s mouth watered at the breathless sighs and moans he dragged out from her, taking note of what seemed to please her best.

He kept his fingers moving, working Sisika up into a frenzy as he kissed and nipped his way down her torso. Barely slowing the movements of his fingers, he tugged her shorts down further until she got the hint and helped him get them out of the way. Then and only then did he pull his fingers free to throw her legs over his shoulders and sink his face between her legs to taste the source of her sweet, addictive scent.

It had been a while since Sisika had been with a man. Far too long with only her fingers and a toy to remember what it was like to have a man’s mouth on her sex. With her mind turned into molten magma by the estacy of his tongue sliding along her slit before diving inside to lick and nipple at her, she could not even remember experiencing a pleasure so intense.

Remi did not let her breath. Still amped up from his fingers, she was sensitive and responsive to every swipe and swirl of his tongue. He took what he learned from before and applied it in earnest until she was a quivering, pleading mess bunching up the sheets with her hands. Her thighs tightened around his head and he took that as a sigh to take things a step further. Pinning her hips down with one hand, his moved mouth from her core to focus on her clit as he buried two fingers into her. He curled his fingers enough to rub against the bundled nerves inside her as he pumped, hard and fast.

Remi received the scream he wanted. A waving song of pleasure that had him growling as he worked her through the orgasm. He did not slow until he felt her loosen around his fingers and her legs fell slack. Sliding his fingers free, he gave her a few final lips before sitting up and taking his time to lick the digits clean.

“Fuck.” Sisika propped herself up on her elbows, a dazed expression on her face and a flush in her skin. “Just… fuck, can I keep you?”

“We’ll see if you still feel that way when I’m done with you.” The promise of more stroked her sated desire right back into a hunger. She dropped her still shaking legs from his shoulders to allow him to rise up between them and kiss her. Their hands bumped against each other at his waist, fumbling with his button and zipper and they shared a breathless laugh.

Only to freeze at the distant sounds of an Indigo Girl song that started playing in another part of the flat. 

“Aimee.” Remi sighed heavily and pressed his lips against hers once before before pulling away. He fixed his jeans with a grunt, trying to ignore the angry erection that pressed against his zipper as he left Sisika’s bed. He wanted nothing more than to crawl back on top of her to finish what they had started and, judging by the less than happy curse from Sisika, so did she. “I have to answer that. She’s probably worried sick by now.”

“Goddamnit.” Sisika threw her arms over her face and mentally cursed her friend for her rather shite timing. As much as she wanted to tell him to ignore it, she could not. The two of them should have returned to Sanctuary a while ago and as much as she wanted Remi back in her bed, she knew the call had to be answered. “Yeah, go answer.”

What a fucking cockblock.


	8. Regret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for this one.

Sisika rolled out of her mussed bed with a groan of defeat. Although she could not hear Aimee’s side of the conversation, she knew too well that her friend was worried. Remi tried to sooth his sister, assuring her that they two of them were fine, but had to tell her about the attack. Even though he kept the details sparse, Sisika was positive it only made Aimee worry further.

With a heavy sigh she crossed her room to trade out her bra and pull on matching panties. Remembering the scrape on her leg she opted to kick off her boots and pull on a pair of jeans. One less thing for Aimee to fret over when they made it back to the limani. She pulled her boots back on and retreated to the bathroom to freshen up.

Sisika was quite a sight. Green marker smeared along the length of her forearm, lips swollen from Remi’s kisses, a peppering of reddened flesh over her throat and collarbones, and sex hair to beat the band. The hair was tamed with a brush and the marker washed off easily enough with some water and a rag.

“Sisika?” Remi tapped on the bathroom door. “Fang’s on his way with the car.”

“Peachy.” She popped the door open for him. Remi’s eyes dipped over her, lingering on the hickies bared by the low neckline of her tanktop. His handwork. Suddenly overly aware of the marks she lifted her hand as if to cover them as her cheeks flushed. “What?”

“Cover that up.” The words were surprisingly cold for a man who had his mouth on her most intimate place not to long ago. “Wear a turtleneck, a scar, or put on some makeup. Just keep it covered.”

“What?” Dumbstruck by his words, at first all she could do was blink at him. It caught of off guard. Why did it matter if they were covered or not? The two of them were full grown adults and single at that. There was no need to shy away like they were teenagers hiding something from disapproving parents. “What’s the point in that? Someone’ll see them eventually.”

“Just cover it up.”

“Fine, fine.” She turned her back on him and yanked the drawer built into her sink open and fished out her concealer and a clean sponge. She started working on covering the marks and blending in the makeup as she watched him out of the corner of her eye. “Are you regretting it?”

“Sisika, I-” A bit of vulnerability flashed in his eyes before he shut down on her. “It was a mistake.”

A mistake. The words struck her with the force of a mack truck. She reeled from them and her hand froze, fingers tightening on the sponge. She did not really think he regretted it, even if it hurt that he had not denied it. She certainly had not regretted it.

Now she was wondering if it was a mistake after all. A moment of adrenaline infused passion with no real substance. 

The thought hurt like hell.

“A mistake.” Sisika repeated the words and felt them fall like leaden weights from her tongue. Her eyes moved from his in the mirror, focusing instead on covering the hickies with the creamy makeup and blending it in. Her pain gave way to anger and she revelled in that, because anger she could handle. “Is that what it was? Nevermind, don’t fucking answer.”

She twisted the cap on the concealer, shoved it into her pocket, and chucked the sponge in the wastebin before she turned on him. He stepped aside to let her out and she went to her dresser to pull on a cardigan. An added layer to cover part of what Remi had called a mistake. An extra layer between her and the man who had struck her such a low blow.

It was hard to take. The man who held her hand and gave her comfort as she talked about something that had pained her for years. The man who had risked himself to protect her. The man who she was falling for despite all of her walls. He had called their intimacy a mistake.

Gods, she wanted to scream. She wanted to hit something.

Instead Sisika went to the door to gather her fallen bag and keys. She kicked her shirt across the room. She kept her eyes from meeting his. When Fang arrived, she refused to even glance Remi’s way or speak a word to him. The silence fell heavy over the car and though she felt eyes on her, she bit the inside of her cheek and kept her face as calm as possible.

Aimee met them at the door, needing to see with her own eyes that they were still in one piece. Fang greeted her with a kiss on the cheek before retreating inside to help out at the bar since they were a man and a woman short. Aimee gave them both tight hugs and curious looks, her eyes darting between Remi and Sisika.

“Did you-” She cut herself off and cleared her throat, choosing not to ask. “Are you two okay? You weren’t hurt, were you?”

“Don’t worry, I’m fine.” Sisika took a step back, putting some space between herself and the Peltiers. “I’m just exhausted so I’m going to bed. I’ve got work tomorrow and after tonight I feel like I could sleep for a year.”

“Like hell you’re going to work.” Remi’s growl stopped her escape in its tracks.

“Excuse me?” The venom in his words did not make him flinch as she turned on him, fire in her eyes. 

“You’re not going in. You nearly got grabbed tonight.”

“Really?” Anger rode her hard and she planted her hands on her hips. “Who the hell do you think you are, Remi Peltier, trying to tell me how to live my damn life?”

“I’m the one trying to keep your stubborn ass from getting yourself killed.” He closed the distance between them, stopping nearly nose to nose to her if she were taller. The words were sharp with something like rage, but it did nothing to frighten her. If anything it just pissed her off further. 

“Yeah, well, I never asked you to.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “In fact, I’m pretty sure I said I wanted nothing to do with any of this.”

“Like you have a choice anymore.” He snapped back. “Get your head out of your ass and be thankful we’re trying to help you!”

“Guys?” Aimee cleared her throat in an attempt to pull their attention towards her. “I get tension’s kind of high right now, but there’s no need to fight. I don’t know everything that went down tonight, but I’m sure after a good night’s rest and some time to cool off everything will seem better tomorrow.”

“Not with her continuing to put herself at risk.” Remi’s eyes stayed on Sisika even as he spoke to his sister. “Tonight was too damn close.”

“In more ways than one, right?” Sisika shoved him back. As strong as he was, she was surprised when he stumbled backwards a step. “I’m not some helpless damsel who’s going to sit at home, twiddling my thumbs, so listen the fuck up. I am not putting my life on hold. Not for some dumb fucking soul-sucker and not for you.”

“You don’t understand anything, do you?” Remi caught her hand and yanked her forward. She collided with his chest and her anger fused with desire.

“Maybe I don’t.” This was not her world. Magick and creatures cursed by gods. The type of shit she had been trying to avoid for years now. There was nothing in this world for her. Nothing but pain. “But you don’t understand either, do you?”

“What don’t I understand?”

The fact that she was falling in love with him and how much that terrified her? The fact that his dismissal of what did happen and what nearly happened between them hurt like hell? That the idea of letting herself get any closer to him made her blood run cold with fear?

There was no way he could understand that what she felt towards him, what was growing in her heart, scared her just as much, if not more, than the daimons.

“I’m already dead.” Sisika said instead of what plagued her heart. “Evil Fabio’s gotten away twice now. He’s had more than enough time to tell all his fanged buddies about me, about what I can do.”

“They’ll just keep coming.” Aimee’s hand landed on her shoulder with a gentleness that softened her voice. “You might never be safe.”

“Yeah.” Sisika freed her hand from Remi’s and shrugged off Aimee’s touch. She needed to get away from them. To keep her wall up. The attachment she had for the Peltiers could not grow any stronger. “That’s what ya’ll need to understand here. Evil Fabio is the tip of the iceberg that’s gonna put a stop to my ship. Read me loud and clear? I’m fucked. Dead woman walking.”

“What about your sigils?” Aimee pressed. “There’s gotta be one that’ll help. Maybe if we do some research-”

“There’s nothing.” She shoved her hands into her pockets, only to bump into the concealer. Pulling them back out she crossed them under her chest instead. “And I can’t just make one. Not without risking all of you and I’ve done that enough.”

Tonight was proof of that. The Evil Eye had malfunctioned. Somewhere she had gotten the lines wrong and instead of sending the man flying it had burned the eyes right out of his evil skull. There was no telling how any sigil she might create could affect those around her, those she cared about, if it even did anything at all.

“There has to be something we can do.” Aimee swallowed against the lump in her throat, tears welling in her eyes. She looked between Remi and Sisika, but neither had an answer for her. “I’ll keep trying to contact Ash and Savitar. If anyone can do it, one of them can.”

“You do that.” Not like Sisika could stop her. “I’m going to bed, okay? It’s been a long night and I could really use some sleep.”

“Alright…” Aimee glanced at Remi who remained silent before offering Sisika a small smile. “Can we talk when you wake up?”

“Yeah, sure.” She slipped past them on her way to the stairs that would lead to the guest bedroom she was using. “Goodnight.”

*

A swirling eye, wide and sharply winged was drawn onto Sisika’s hand. Something she had not used since her high school years when she crammed late into the night before a difficult test. The need to sleep hovered at the edge of her mind, but could never overtake her with the sigil keeping her awake.

In the distance, if she listened carefully, she could hear movement within the house. The distant hum of a television as someone watched a movie. Voices as someone moved down the hallway. Further away, if she really strained, she thought she heard the faint thump of bass from the bar. Bit by bit the sounds fell away. The television was shut off. The people holding a conversation settled into their own bed. The bar closed and the music shut down.

Sanctuary and the Peltier house had gone to bed, but Sisika remained awake.

When no sound came from outside her room for quite a while, Sisika stood from her still-made bed and crossed over to the empty dresser. She slipped her cardigan back on and grabbed her back before she tiptoed to the door. With her ear pressed against the wood and her breath held, she waited for any hint that the house was not truly asleep.

When Sisika was sixteen she had done something similar and the memory rose up as she made her way through the halls. There was a party she had been invited to, but Rochelle had forbidden it because of her grades and lack of adult supervision. Being a stupid, stubborn teenager she had waited until her mother had fallen asleep before sneaking through their silent, modest home and out the door. 

Her mom had not realised she had left until the morning when she had gone into Sisika’s room to find her gone. The calls had come, quick and frantic, waking Sisika from the pile of blankets she and her friends had collapsed on after abandoning the party in favour of a movie marathon and snacks.

Although fully grown, Sisika still felt the same breathless fear that someone would wake up and stop her. She still felt the same rush when she finally reached the door and slid outside.

“It’s better this way,” she told herself as she turned her back on the Peltier house and walked away. There was nothing they could do for her, however hard they tried, and the failure to help would only haunt them for years to come.

That kind of pain felt too familiar to her, too raw for her to ever inflict it on anyone else. She had not been able to help her mother as a child and, as an adult, she had not been able to save the two people who had been her very heart. 

This was what her fate was. To destroy everything she touched.

Sisika stopped in a restaurant for a cup of coffee and to touch up the sigil on her hand. She made a call to a taxi company she found in the phonebook and sipped her coffee while she waited for a ride. She could not go back to her flat. She needed to go somewhere that the Peltiers would not find her and the phonebook offered up a solution in the form of a hotel further away from the neighborhood.

[To: Mandy;Tiann] Not coming in to work for a few days. Sorry. Personal problems.

It was too early to expect a response from her coworker and boss, but she silenced her phone just in case before plugging it up to charge. She had contemplated sending a text to Aimee and Remi, but rolled away from the phone. If either of them woke up they would realise what she had done and try to convince her to come back.

Instead she licked her thumb and rubbed it through the sigil. 

She would figure out what to do next after getting some sleep.

[From: Aimee Baby] Where are you? Are you okay?

[From: Tiann] sure take all the time u need

[From: Sexy Grump] Sisika, answer your phone.

[From: Aimee Baby] Please text me back. Or call. Just please be okay.

[From: Mandy] Sure thing, babe. Anything I could do to help?

Sisika woke up to numerous texts and several missed calls - the majority of which were from Remi. She replied to Tiann and Mandy first, thanking them for their understanding and telling them she would keep in touch and try to be back to work as soon as possible. She told Mandy she was thankful for her offer, but she could handle it on her own.

Quite possibly a lie, but there was no way she could involve someone else in the mess that had become her life.

Her screen flashed, Aimee’s name appearing in the caller identification. She dreaded talking to her but bit the bullet and accepted the call.

“Sisika!” Aimee’s voice came across loud and clear. Sisika winced, both at the volume and the concern in her friend’s voice, and switched her to speakerphone. “Where are you?”

“I’m safe.” She avoided telling Aimee where she was. It was better if no one knew. “I’m sorry to worry you. I was asleep when you first texted.”

“You’re sorry…” She could hear Aimee let out a frustrated breath and the rattle of a spoon in a cup. “It’s fine, it’s fine. I’m just glad you’re okay. When are you coming back?”

“I’m not.” Sisika drew her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

“If this is about Remi-”

“Why would it be about him?” She sucked in a breath, wondering what her friend knew. 

“I know that you two got… a bit closer.” Aimee’s voice was soft when she answered. “Did you guys have a fight before Fang picked you up? He said you two were wound up tighter than a spring on the ride back to the house.”

“Remi didn’t tell you?”

“No. I, uh, could smell him on you.” The admission made Sisika sit up straighter and stare at the phone as if it could had answers for the freakiness of what she was hearing. “I don’t know exactly what happened, but I could tell you two were-”

“How the hell could you smell that?” Sisika knew Aimee was not pulling her leg. Not when she was this worried about her. “And you wanna know what happened? We almost fucked and he called it a damn mistake. End of story and not why I left.”

“I’ll explain the smell thing later, I promise.” It was a long story and an explanation better left when they had more time. “And remind me to slap my brother for being a bonafide idiot. Calling that a mistake… what a dumbass.”

“No, don’t.” As angry as she as at Remi for that, she did not want to turn his sister against him for it. “I’m sure he had his reasons.”

“Yeah, he does. He’s a fucking coward, that’s his reason.” Aimee huffed in anger and slammed her cup down hard enough for Sisika to hear the liquid slosh over the table. “He doesn’t crawl back to apologise and explain shit in the next day or so, you let me know and I’ll set this shit straight, okay?”

“There’s no need. It’s not like I can be with him anyway.” Her impending death was only one of her reasons. “Aimee… Can you get Remi in the room and put me on speaker phone. I need to explain why I left. After everything ya’ll have done for me, you deserve to hear this…”

Sisika abandoned the bed while Aimee left to get her brother and yanked open the minibar. The bill for the room was going to be outrageous for the overpriced and undersized bottles of whiskey she pulled out, but she needed a strong liquor to help her through the box of memories she was about to open. Draining the three bottles of whiskey, she grabbed the two dark rums before returning to her bed.

“You two here?” She waited for confirmation and stared at the dark amber of her liquor in their clear, plastic bottles as she steeled herself.

“Yeah, we’re here.” Remi was the one who answered and she felt her determination waver at the rich timbre of his voice. 

“Good, because I’m only telling this story once.” 

When Sisika was twenty-two, the tattoo artist who was mentoring her introduced her to his brother. Rick had been a year older than her with a two year old daughter who was a freckled, green eyed mini version of her father. They had become fast friends and eventually she and Rick had become lovers with lofty goals of marriage and a sweet little house in the suburbs where they would raise Luc and possibly give her a little brother or sister to torment.

They had become her entire world and she had been deliriously happy, but terrified she would lose them just as she had lost her birthmother. She threw herself into her match, working up teas to promote good health, embroidering sigils to protect, and putting up every magickal trick she knew to keep them strong, healthy and whole.

Magick had failed her.

She was not home when her world turned on its head. She had been with Rochelle for the week to be with her during the anniversary of Kate’s passing. The cops told her it was an electrical fire. Some critter must have chewed through the wires, they said.

Sisika forgot how to eat. She stopped sleeping. Day and night she prayed over their sleeping bodies, desperate for them to wake up. She threw herself into her magick once more, trying to find a way to cleanse the smoke from their lungs and undo the damage of the fire that had seared their flesh. Luc woke up, coughing and scarred, but still as beautiful and sweet as ever. Rick never woke up.

Because she and Rick had not had a chance to marry, the state handed Luc over to her uncle. Torn by the loss of his brother and saddled with a child, he had been full of tears and apologises as he packed Lucille’s things into the back of his truck. He promised to keep in touch, but they both tasted the lie. She was only a memory of his loss.

She had turned her back on magick then, just as she had turned her back on love. They had both failed her in the worst possible way - just as much as she had failed them, leaving her with a broken world and a broken heart.

“I failed to save him and I couldn’t be there for Luc.” She pressed her palms to her eyes, feeling the heat and slickness of her tears.  “It’s like that now, except the shoes on the other foot. You can’t save me, but I can’t have you throwing everything you have into trying. I can’t have this haunting you like Rick’s death haunts me. So… Just forget about me, okay? You’ve done more than enough. What happens after this isn’t on your shoulders.”


	9. Give It a Chance

”You two are so obnoxiously stupid it kills me.” Aimee shoved her phone away and let her head fall with a thump against the table top. Sisika had ended the call without giving either of them time to digest her story or reply. Every call afterwards went straight to voicemail. 

They both understood too well the pain of losing someone they loved and not being able to save them. The pain was what pushed the Peltiers to create a limani and keep that title. To keep a pain like that from being repeated. To give creatures of all types a sanctuary. To keep them from losing more of their family.

Sisika did not want to be the cause of such pain for them, without knowing their history. Sweet, but the witch was already under their skins. If she died they would feel the loss just as keenly as they felt the loss of their family.

“You both let the past hold you back.” Aimee’s voice was muffled by the table, but Remi heard the accusation loud of clear. Clearer still when she lifted her head and glared at her brother. “Trash your past, fuck up your futures. Damnit, Remi, you’re such a dumbass. Saying it was a mistake! Way to go! A plus flirting there.”

“Aims-”

“Don’t ‘Aims’ me, mister! I’m not letting it go.” The glare that pinned Remi down was so similar to the ones their mother used against them when they fought it was unreal. It was like Nicolette Peltier was sitting across from them, full of frustration and disappointment and he shrunk beneath the weight of it as his throat tightened with emotion. “You like her, Remi. A blind man could’ve seen that. And she likes you, but you had to go and stick your foot in your math. And why? Because you’re a dumbass who can’t let go of the past.”

“It’s not that simple.” Remi dragged a hand over his face. He had gone to bed feeling like shit and the feeling only grew a thousand times worse when he pokd his head into Sisika’s room to offer her a cup of coffee to find her bed cold and her and her things gone without a trace. The only sign she had been there at all was her faint scent in the room and his shirt that she wore her first night in the house. Then the hours of silence when she would not answer her phone or respond to texts had driven a spike into the depths of his heart. Being scolded by his sister only made him feel worse, especially after hearing Sisika’s heart-wrenching story.

Whether she had meant to or not, Sisika had opened herself up to him. She had cracked open a door that had probably been kept tightly shut since her fiance’s death. She had opened up and he had called it a mistake. All because his fears had returned once his head cleared enough for his thoughts and hangups to catch up to him. Fears of opening himself up to another woman only to have the Fates rip her away had made him turn around and insult her.

At least Becca was alive, even if it hurt to see her and know she had crawled into bed with the wrong man, mistaking Quinn for him. The Fates had taken her from him, making her and Quinn’s palms, mating them. Even though they consummated the relationship, married, and seemed content, the pair edged around him as if he would break at any moment. They kept themselves at a respectable distance from each other and from him - possibly out of respect for his pain.

Becca lived, but Sisika’s fiance had died. An accident, a twist of Fate, had taken their first loves from them, but the depth of his pain could not match the depth of hers.

Remi felt like complete and utter shit. The very definition of shit. Shit incarnate.

“Look at me, Rem.” Aimee waited until his eyes met hers. “We both know you’ve been blind to everyone but Becca, but you saw her. You saw Sisika and I haven’t seen you so lively in years. Hell, you showed more emotion than just anger and depression since you met her. I know you loved Becca and that part of you always will, but she wasn’t what the Fates had in store, but maybe Sisika is. You’ll never know if you don’t give it a shot.”

The Fates. The three goddesses had been a thorn in the side of the ever since King Lycaon of Arcadia, in fear of losing his sons the same way he lost his Apollite wife, cheated them. The king had used magic to twist the DNA of Apollites and animals, picking the strongest and most feared of the latter, and created two new species. He succeeded in circumventing the curse, extending the lives of those he change from twenty-seven years to something close to a thousand. 

No man can defy the will of a god without some form of punishment and the Fates decreed that Lycaon had to sacrifice his sons. When the king refused, the Fates split the new beings into two groups - forever to hate and fight until their end - pinning the Katagarian, those with animal hearts, against the Arcadians, those with a human heart.

As if that was not enough of a pain in their asses, the Fates had to stab at the weres again, by choosing their mates for them. Unmated they can date and sleep with whomever they desire, but once that mark appeared they had to choose between infertility, a nasty case of erectile dysfunction, and loneliness or accepting the Fate’s mark and consummating the mating.

As an Arcadian bear, Remi knew all of this too well. 

“I’ll try.” He could not make any promises but those words were enough to make Aimee’s face brighten and a smile to spread across her face. 

“Good. As long as you do.” She reached across the table to take his hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I just want to see you happy one of these days and I really think Sisika might be able to help you get there.”

“Before then,” Remi’s eyes slid to her phone with a pointed look. “We need to find Sisika and figure out a way to help her. Without knowing who the daimon might have told about her-”

“What if he tells us?” The suggestion was so ridiculous Remi snorted on his laughter.

“Right. Aims, I love you, but get some coffee.” He nodded towards the kitchen where a pot had already been brewed. “‘Cause you appear to have forgotten they’re not exactly chummy with us bears.”

“No, but we might be able to twist his arm.” His teasing made her pout and slap his hand.

“Considering I played a role in his eyes being melted, he might not be willing to take tea with me even if I twist his arm into a pretzel.” The idea had some merit although pulling it off was the puzzler. “How would we even get our hands on him?”

“He might come after her again or send someone else.” It depended on just how personal capturing Sisika was and how well he trusted his cohorts. “Maybe he hasn’t told anyone. I mean, you didn’t see anyone else with him when he went after her, right? Maybe he wants her power for himself? If he didn’t then he’ll have to keep coming after her.”

“I don’t know.” Remi’s hand balled into a fist. “We need to get ahold of Savitar and Acheron.”

“In the meantime, I say we lay a trap for the daimon.” Aimee stood and carried her cold cup of coffee to the sink to dump it out and pour herself a new one. “He’s the only one who’s seen her, after all, and he’s blind now. So if he shows up he won’t know if it’s just a standin for Sisika or someone else and if he sends someone, they won’t know if it’s someone else.”

“That might actually work.” The question was who could stand in for Sisika. Edilyn was of the first to come to mind. She and Sisika both had raven-black hair and their skin tones were similar enough. While they were clearly two different, unrelated women, a stranger with only a base description of Sisika might mix them up. “Edilyn could work. And she’d be able to handle her own.”

“You wanna convince the dragon or should I?” Although a fierce warrior on her own and a dragonslayer of elite skill, Illarion would not be receptive to the idea of sending his mate into danger. “Better yet. Go right to the woman in question. I’m pretty sure she’d be down for helping.”

The talk with Edilyn ended up pulling in a crowd. All of those who considered Sisika a friend, those who only met her once or twice, and a few who had never met her crowded the den Aimee and Remi had called Edilyn to. Turns out the general whole of Peltier house had an interest in hearing the possible solution the pair of siblings had come up with and seeing how they could help. Illarion stood behind his mate, every inch of bristling warning as they unfolded the tale and what they had planned, but Edilyn warmed to the idea rather quickly.

It was a risk, not knowing how large of a force the daimon might bring if he made another attempt, but one the ex-dragonslayer was willing to make despite never having met Sisika. Besides, no one could call her a coward and keep their head.

Remi remained silent throughout the meeting, hands restless against his phone. Sisika had not called back since their last talk and the texts he had sent her were left unanswered. The urge to hear her voice rode him nearly as hard as the need to see her face. He needed to know that she was safe.

He needed to try to fix the mess he had made of things and he typed up apology after apology only to delete the unsent message. He needed to talk to her, face to face.

Maybe, just maybe, if they succeeded in snagging the daimon and forcing him to talk and figuring out a way to destroy the chain of whoever might know about Sisika, he could have another shot with the stubborn witch.

“If they’re watching Inked Bones they’ll know she didn’t go into work today, so we’ll lay the trap from here.” Aimee had pulled out her phone and set her GPS to connect Sanctuary with Sisika’s flat to show the path that would be taken. “So, Remi and Edi walk to the flat… Remi, you’re gonna have to carry the conversation in case your eyeless comes around.”

“Right.” Easier said than done, but he felt he could play friendly with the woman he hardly knew for Sisika’s sake. He would not have to talk much, just enough to make it seem as if he were walking with Sisika rather than a near stranger.

“Get to the flat and spend some time there. Either one of you think you can get inside?” The pair looked at Aimee in surprise at the question. “They know her path, they could know where she lives. So spend at least ten minutes in there. Make sure nothing’s out of place too.”

“I can do that.” Remi ducked his head at the curious looks he received from those who had not realised just how much time he had spent with Sisika or his visits to her flat. The soft, understanding ‘Ahh’ from one of his twins underlined their sudden realisation of the nature of Remi’s relationship with Sisika. Not that there was a relationship with his big mouth.

“Any chance you know if she has any supplies in there? Like, witch stuff?” Aimee locked her gaze on Remi and offered him a small smile when he looked up. “Anything related to her sigils. In case they do ransack her place, might be best to relocate that.”

“I’ll do it.” The flat was not very large. He could likely find them fairly easily. At any rate, he knew there was at least one embroidered sigil nailed onto her wall. A harmless enough decoration but there was no telling what a daimon might be able to do with the magical symbols. Still, he would rather not risk Sisika’s wrath by poking around without her permission so he used that as an excuse to send her another text.

[To: Witch] Any chance there’s a spare key to your flat I can borrow?

[From: Witch] What?

[To: Witch] Need to relocate your magic stuff.

[From: Witch] Oh. Landlord has a spare. I’ll let him know to expect you.

[From: Witch] And it’s all still in a box. Should be hard to miss.

“Sisika’s gonna have her landlord give me a spare so if Edilyn pretends to be missing her keys and sends me I can pick it up.” Remi informed the gathering as he drummed his fingers along the side of his phone. “Once inside we just have to look for a box. She says it’ll be hard to miss.”

“Does she know about the plan?” Edilyn’s eyes slid from Aimee to Remi, curiosity clear in a blue that mimicked a spring sky.

“Only that we’re relocating her stuff, which she doesn’t seem opposed to.” Remi dropped his eyes back down to the phone, lighting it back up and unlocking it with his passcode to type out another message. “She won’t agree with it so in this case it’s better I don’t tell her.”

[To: Witch] Are you doing okay wherever you are?

[From: Witch] Snug as a bug in a rug. 

[From: Witch] Don’t worry about me.

[To: Witch] Too late, already worried. Deal with it.

[From: Witch] Don’t make me turn off my phone again.

“Right, so mum’s the word for the time being. We can deal with her griping at us after she’s safe.” Aimee pulled attention back to herself and waved her phone at them. “Text when you’ve got the box. One of us will pick it up and stash it in her room. After it’s gone, you two take another walk. Maybe pop in inked bones or stop somewhere for some coffee. Try to lure out the daimon.”

“Say they lure him out. Then what?” Illarion’s hand landed on his mate’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze that made her turn and smile up at him. Edilyn gave his hand a gentle pat is if to tell him she would be okay.

“Capture him, alive. Can’t take him back here…” Violence might be needed to get the blonde to talk and that would break the rules of limani. Kidnapping was dangerously close to breaking the rules as it was, so the daimon would have to be placed elsewhere. “Maybe take him to Sisika’s flat? Keep him bound up so he can’t bolt.”

“Speaking of bolting. What about boltholes?” If one opened up reinforcements might come pouring out. Fern frowned at the idea, eyes pausing on Remi and Edilyn for a moment. The pair of them could fight but enough daimons and even the best of them could be taken down.

“I’ll handle the daimon.” The man that strolled into the room was tall and with a sex appeal to make anyone’s libido stand up and pay attention. Although young in face, appearing to be in his early twenties, the six foot eight male exuded a power no one in the room could deny. Acheron, leader of the Dark Hunters and an enigma in his own right, claimed a patch of wall with a dangerous smile on his face. “You nab him, just holler. I’ll take it from there.”

“About time you show up.” Remi snapped at the male who shrugged off the barbs. “We could’ve used your help when this first started.”

“What can I say? I’m a busy man.” Acheron waved off the glare with a casual twist of his wrist. “I came when I could.”

“Good to see you, Ash.” Aimee shot their friend a smile and he returned it with a warm one of his own. “Any word from Savitar?”

“None, but I’m sure he’s keeping an eye on the situation.” He might be, or the powerful male might just be catching some rays on his surfboard. Savitar preferred to be left alone and even though the Arcadians and Katagarians might be his jurisdiction, he tended to stay out of their business unless it came to a meeting of the clans on his impossible to find, moving island.

It could almost be taken as a good sign that Savitar had not shown his face or responded to the calls tossed his way. If the wetsuit wearing, obscenely powerful male showed up then that meant things were a hell of a lot worse than they had suspected. Savitar did not like leaving his waves for anything.

At any rate, knowing Acheron was there to help gave Remi real hope that Sisika would finally be safe.

*

“Yeah, I’m not even staying at home right now with this jazz. Between the legion of paperwork and not knowing when they’ll call me in, I’m chilling at a friend’s for the time being.” Sisika wrinkled her nose at the fresh smell of nail polish that filled the air as she twisted open a bottle to paint her toenails. Her nails had already been done and dried in a deep, familiar blue, giving the room time to air out with the open window whisking away most of the stink, but she had chosen a black to do her toenails in and subjected herself to the chemical odor once again.

At least it gave her something to do between watching her phone for texts from Remi and overthinking the crappy situation she found herself in.

“Hopefully it won’t take long for them to sort the mess out.” Tiann sound every bit of sympathetic towards the imagine plight she offered him. Enough so that she felt an ache in her chest for lying to him. “If there’s anyway I can help…”

“I’ll let you know, big guy.” She wiggled her toes to gauge whether she needed another layer or two of the black. “I’m good for now.”

Sisika had spun a tale of paperwork having been mixed up in her move. Notifications of changes of addresses that had not been pushed through, bills that had not been shut off, and a freeze on her accounts she had to clear up with proof of her move. None of it was true, but Tiann had no way of knowing she was really hiding out in a subpar hotel to keep her friends safe from some soul-sucking fiend obsessed with magick she had never asked for.

“Mom’s loaning me some cash and I’ll pick that up tomorrow morning.” Another layer of the lie. “Enough about that, how’s work? Mandy hasn’t protested by setting fires in the bin, has she?”

“Not yet, thankfully.” Tiann’s laugh rumbled over the phone. “She’s in the pouting stage tonight but tomorrow there’s no telling. I might have to frisk her for matches before I leave her alone to man the front.”

“Maybe! Just don’t hold me responsible for any damage the store takes while I’m away.” The nail polish was still a bit translucent so she opted to give each nail another once over. Chatting with Tiann did wonders for her mood, but she found herself missing Remi.

Tiann was a good man, though a bit too Goth for her personal tastes. Although he ran Inked Bones, he had a chair of his own and a skill with the tattoo gun that impressed Sisika enough for her to consider trusting him for her next tattoo. He was there, night after night, to keep the place running smoothly and seemed to not mind if they called in as long as they did call and someone else could come in to keep the shop from being too swamped whenever rushes came in.

Truth be told, Tiann reminded Sisika of Rick in a few ways despite the two men having contrasting styles. Tiann always looked magazine cover ready while Rick needed her help to tame his hair most mornings, but they both had this softness to them. This easy openness that made them easy to talk to, easy to become friends with.

“Hey, Sisika.” Tiann’s voice drew her back out of her thoughts. “I have a question.”

“You have my permission to ask it.” She finished the last nail and capped the polish before chucking the bottle in the approximate direction of her bag.

“I was wondering if we could meet up for coffee sometime after your paperwork ordeal is over.” He took a deep breath and let it out. “Don’t think of this as a demand or anything, okay? It’s no big deal if you say no, but I’d like you take you out. On a date.”

“Wow, didn’t see that coming.” Surprise slowed Sisika’s tongue as her mind raced to digest the request. Tiann asked her out. On a date. “Um, Tiann, you’re a sweetheart but I’m not really looking for a relationship right now.”

“I know. Mandy told me.” At least he sounded bashful about the matter, making it easier to forgive her coworker for talking to him about her personal business like that. Unfortunately it made it harder to shoot him down. “I don’t need an answer right now. There’s no pressure, no expectations. Just a simple date and we can see where things go, if anywhere, from there.”

Her phone, which had been on speakerphone, lit up and beeped with the notification of an incoming message. She leaned forward to pick up the phone, tapped in her code, and frowned down at the message.

Remi. What timing with a man on her line, asking her out for a date. A man who would not call getting intimate with her a mistake. A man who was blessedly normal and not a pain in the ass grump. She pressed the power button to close down the screen.

“You know what, Tiann, let’s do this. How about tomorrow night?”

“Really?” The thrill in his voice did not reach through the cold anger fueling her spontaneous decision. “You free tomorrow evening? Or would later be better? Would nine be too late or too early? Anytime’s fine with me.”

“Ten.” Sisika answered as she dropped back against the headboard of the uncomfortable bed. “We can meet up at Pierre’s. I hear they have a bomb coffee menu.”

“Sure, Pierre’s at ten!” She could practically hear his smile over the line. “You won’t regret this, Sisika.”

No, she should not. This was just the ticket she needed to get Remi off her mind once and for all.


	10. Not Safe

True to her word, Sisika had called her landlord. The elderly Asian gentleman handed over the spare key easily enough after comparing Remi’s identification against the name he had copied down on a post it note. Apparently, according to the man’s good natured chatter, Sisika had explained that Remi was a dear friend of hers and was going to look after her flat for a short while - but she had forgotten to give him her key before she had left. With a twinkle in his eye, Mr Miyamoto told Remi he had already made a duplicate and that he could keep the key.

“I was young once myself.” He said as he turned a photo on his desk revealing a picture, taken years before the colour had left his hair, on his wedding day. The ring still twinkled on his finger, meticulously taken care of over the decades. “It was the same for me and Keisuke in the beginning. Shyly skirting about our relationship. Of course, it was a different time back then and we faced some issues you two won’t, but still…”

The old man had gotten it in his head that Sisika and Remi were in a relationship.

“Ahh, don’t mind me.” Mr Miyamoto turned his photo back around, eyes lingering on the captured memory with a warm smile on his face. After a moment he nodded to himself and looked up at Remi. “I don’t mind to keep you, Mr Peltier, but would you favour an old man for a moment and listen to his advice?”

“Yes sir?” Shifting awkwardly, Remi traced the shapes of Sisika’s spare key with his finger. He rubbed his fingertip against the teeth of it as he tried to ignore how off kilter this thread of conversation felt. He needed to get back to Edilyn, to find Sisika’s witch paraphernalia, and hit the streets, but his parents would have knocked him out for being rude to a well meaning elder. 

Besides, after deepthroating his foot with Sisika, he could use as much advice as he could get.

“Miss Campbell didn’t say as much, but I know when a man’s in the doghouse when I hear it.” The smile he gave Remi was sympathetic and a touch amused. Mr Miyamoto had laugh lines, Remi realised. Wrinkles from a lifetime of joy. “She trusts you enough with her key, her home. That’s a good sign you two will be able to work it out.”

“I hope so.” Open sincerity seemed to pull out open sincerity and Remi found himself responding without hesitation. “I really messed things up.”

“First fight?”

“Yeah.” 

“They’ll be more.” Mr Miyamoto seemed confident in the fact. “Even my Keisuke and I fought from time to time. Loving is easy, but relationships are a battle at times. Just remember that, Mr Peltier.  Love can be difficult, but it’s worth it for the right one. So hang in there.”

The landlord left Remi go with an apologising for keeping him and Remi returned to Edilyn with the world having been shifted beneath his feet. He was still coming to terms with the fact that he had feelings for Sisika and speaking to the landlord, someone who had been happily married and sounded so certain of the future ahead of Sisika and Remi, had forced him to start confronting just what those feelings really were. They ran deep, laced with the spark of hope that would cut even deeper if he could not fix the mess he had made of things.

Turning his thoughts to the immediate problem, he let Edilyn into Sisika’s flat and they made short work of finding the box. Just as Sisika said, it could not be missed since it was the only unpacked box in the modest home. The contents were disheveled and Edilyn volunteered to tidy it up, leaving Remi to collect the embroidered sigils nailed to the walls throughout the flat.

The scent of spilt oils still lingered faintly in the air. Sisika’s shirt, abandoned in foyer of the flat, remained where she had kicked it last. Nothing appeared to be out of place, he detected no new scents. There was no sign that anyone had found their way into the flat. 

Sisika’s bedroom was unchanged from their last visit. Remi set the sigils he had collected onto her dresser and set about collecting the few articles of clothing she had left strewn about in the room to drop into the basket in the corner, trying hard not to think about how they graced her curves. It was an impossible task with the sight of the mussed bedding and musky scent of her sex still in the air. The ghost of her taste, a flavour he doubted he would ever forget, haunted him.

If Aimee had not called, would Sisika’s palm hear his mating mark?

A mistake. He scoffed at himself, knowing he was one of the greatest idiots to have ever walked the planet’s surface. The mistake he had made had not been tasting the heaven of her mouth and body. His mistake had been opening his damn mouth. Seeing the marks he had left on his skin, proof of their passion, had cut right past lust into a need to possess her. To leave his mark on her and claim her.

His mistake was letting his fear control him and push her away when he should have held her closer. If he had, she might not have ghosted on them. She might be safe where he could see her smile and listen to her sass.

Swallowing his regrets, he scooped up the embroideries and returned to the task at hand. Collecting the last of them, he handed them off to Edilyn to pack away securely. Handing the box over to Cherif, who had come with Fang in the car, he found himself breathing a hair easier. One less worry. One less way the daimon could try to tap into Sisika’s power.

One step closer to her being safe again.

Moving onto the second phase of the plan, Edilyn and Remi locked up the flat and began their walk. 

It was easier talked about in theory than put into practice to chat with Edilyn as if she were Sisika. He was not a talkative type to begin with and it made him feel Sisika’s absence even stronger. It was just easier with her. The witch had not minded his surly moods and lack of participation in conversation, teasing him into responding with her ribbing or dominating the conversation. 

Two hours passed like this without a sign of any daimons. Either Remi and Edilyn had done a pathetic job at playing their roles or the daimon and any of his possible cohorts had not been patrolling for Sisika. It raised plenty of question and offered no answers.

If the eyeless daimon had survived losing his eyes to Sisika’s misdrawn sigil, he might be hanging back in an effort to recover his strength or give them a feeling of false security. Then again, sending any allies right after such a resounding defeat would have had an equal chance of catching them off guard. Either the daimon was working alone or he was treading very carefully with himself and his cohorts.

Remi hated the feeling of uselessness that descended over him when he returned home knowing he had not succeeded in assuring Sisika’s safety. They would have to try again the next night and the night after that. They had to keep trying until they succeeded. Illarion whisked Edilyn from his side once they made it into the door and Aimee looked as if she wanted to pull him aside to talk but one look at him had her stepping back and offering a smile as if to say, ‘It’s okay. You’ll get him next time.’

[To: Witch] Can we talk?

Remi retreated to his bedroom where he paced the floor, phone clasped in his hand as he waited in the heavy silence for Sisika to respond. With the daimon still at large he could not ease the bristling worry that had him on his feet. Nerves twisted in his gut, knotting on itself as the minutes slowly ticked by without a single chime from his phone.

[To: Witch] Are you okay? Is there anything you need?

Another text and another few laps through the room without a response.

[To: Witch] I know you’re still mad. Fine. You have every right to be.

[To: Witch] Just please let me know you’re okay.

He could not tell her how much he needed to know. Words failed him as he dropped down onto the edge of the bed. He had to talk to her. He had to see her. Knowing she was out there, alone, brought up fears that had him sick. The longer he waited with no response the worse he felt. When he called the phone rang until it went to voicemail and his voice shook as he left a message.

Her phone was not off. Something had to be wrong.

[To: Witch] Sisika, please be okay.

[To: Witch] I can’t lose you.

He nearly jumped when his phone chimed. The device fell from his hands and he dove for it. It chimed again and with shaking hands he unlocked the phone only to feel his veins freeze.

The first text was an address. The second twisted and shredded his heart within his chest.

[From: Witch] plz help

*

“God, what the fuck was I thinking?” Sisika kicked her feet only to fling one of the hotel’s overly firm pillows onto her face. With a huff she shoved the offensive rectangle away. “A date. A fucking date when I’ve got soul-sucking freaks after me. I’m the biggest idiot to ever breathe.” 

She would not be alone and she could have a cab take her from her hotel door straight to Pierre’s, a place that was well lit and should not be dead even at this late hour. Tiann had a vehicle of his own and if they decided to go anywhere they should be safe as long as they did not walk.

It was still beyond stupid and just felt wrong.

Yet when she picked up her phone to cancel she found herself hesitating.

It was one date and as long as she was smart about it, she should be perfectly safe. If she followed her instincts and kept a marker on hand, everything should be fine. She could go on the date, try to enjoy herself, and then catch a cab back to her hotel room.

It was a dick move to go on a date with Tiann to begin with, even if he already knew she was not looking for a relationship. He had been so excited by her accepting that she would feel even worse if she did not go. He deserved at least once chance, even if she already knew the night with ultimately end with her carefully turning him down.

“Sisika!” Tiann’s face brightened up as she stepped out of the cab. She shot him a small smile before poking her head in the window to hand over her fare. He moved to her side as the cab rolled away and offered her his arm. “Just in time.”

“Uh, yeah.” Sisika accepted his arm and allowed him to escort her into the small restaurant. Like she suspected the bright place had a few late-night patrons seeking coffee to start obscenely early work days or coming off work late and choosing to order food rather than going through the trouble of cooking at home. 

It was a relief to be inside, away from the shadows of the night that could hide all sorts of danger.

They ordered coffee - an Americano for him and a spiced latte for her. With the menus between them, Sisika made faces and tried to calm her nerves. The feeling of wrongness was persistent, leaving her unsettled and dampening her appetite.

It was one night, she reminded herself. One single date. She willed herself to relax but she just could not. 

What kind of rotten luck did she have? This could very well be her last date, ever, and she was wishing she had not said yes. As handsome and sweet as Tiann was, she just could not see him as more than just a friend. She found herself wishing the man sitting opposite her was someone else.

“Is something wrong?” He must have heard her sigh because he lowered his menu and tapped hers. “Sisika, are you feeling alright?”

“Yeah, well, no.” The smile she gave him was shaky at best. “It’s just been really stressful lately. I guess I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.”

That was one way to put it and safer than the truth. He needed to be kept out of her troubles as much as possible. More than that, she could not tell him that rather than not wanting a relationship, she was sitting there wishing she were on a date with someone else. Someone whose face rode up within her thoughts and made her duck behind the menu again. The very same man who had left marks on her, covered carefully by concealer, and dealt her a devastating blow.

Sisika was still angry at him, angry at herself for letting him wiggle past her wall, but more than anything she missed him.

“Want to talk about it?” Tiann’s offer was kind but she shook her head. “Okay, fair enough. I won’t push. Just know I’m always here if you need a friendly ear.”

“You really are a sweetheart, you know that, right?” 

“But not boyfriend material, right?” The smile he offered her was wry.

She shifted uncomfortably, relieved when the waitress came by to drop off their drinks. They ordered and silence stretched between them once more. 

“Actually, you’re grade A boyfriend material, Tiann.” Sisika finally spoke, meeting his eyes over the table. “Really. You’re handsome and sweet but… Like I said, I’m not looking for a relationship and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

Imminent death made a change of relationship status unlikely.

“If that ever changes…”

“If it does,” She paused to sip her latte and gather herself and her words. “If something changes and that changes, I don’t think my feelings towards you will change.”

“Well, I won’t chase you too hard then.” Tiann’s smile was a relief that ease some of the tension inside of her. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll give up and stop flirting. An ass as fine as yours is worth being a sad puppy over.”

“God, you’re terrible.” She found herself giggling.

Somehow things eased up between them. True to his word, Tiann remained a flirt, but he seemed content with friendly banter. She relaxed further over dinner and when they paid the check she decided she did not regret accepting the invitation. He had taken her rejection with grace and the dynamic between them seemed unchanged save for the easiness only brought on by openness.

It was a nice, she decided as he walked her to his car. He had offered to give her a lift back to her friend’s place, something that had thrown her off until she remembered her lie, which she quickly rejected. Instead she asked him to drive her to a convenience store near the hotel, claiming her friend had asked her to pick up some quick groceries for the morning. She could walk from there or catch a cab, she insisted, and he needed to get home and rest since one of them had work the next day.

“Sisika,” Tiann rolled to a stop at a red light, glancing at her from beneath long lashes. “There’s a satchel attached to the back of your seat. Can you reach back there and find my glasses?”

“I didn’t know you wore glasses.” She unlatched her seatbelt and twisted around. The red of the streetlight did not penetrate the back of his SUV, making it necessary to find the satchel by touch.

“I only need them for some nights, when I drive.” He unlatched his own seatbelt, the sound distant and not registering in her thoughts as she felt her way through the pockets. Pens, memo books, paperclips, plastic utensils, and even a few granola bars. He had every pocket stuffed haphazardly with odds and ends of the kind of stuff someone rarely needed, but was definitely useful to have on those rare occasions.

“Are you sure they’re in here?” She fished out what she thought was glasses but only turned out to be a monocle. Weird.

“I’m sorry.” Tiann’s hand clamped down over her mouth and nose. He dragged her back into the front of the car with an arm wrapped tightly around her, pinning her arms to her sides. Damp cloth, rank with the stench of chemicals, choked her and made her head spin. The red light switched to green, streaking trails across her vision only to be swallowed by a chemical hazed black.

Once he was certain Sisika was out, Tiann carefully settled her back into the seat and securely latched her in with the seatbelt. He avoided looking at her face and went a far as to turn her head gently away from him. He turned, away from the store she had asked to be dropped off with, and drove drown the empty street.

  
  
  



	11. Betrayal

”Did you check her pockets?”

“Yes. She’s got nothing on her now.” Tiann had been careful to pat her down and remove the tube of plain chapstick and blue marker that had been tucked into her pockets. Both items were tucked into the small bag she had with her and left safely tucked away in his car.

“Good. We won’t have a repeat of last time. Tie her up and make sure she can’t get loose.”

“Fine, fine.” The sight of the blood stained blindfold was enough to make him double knot the rights binding Sisika to the chair. As sweet as the tattoo artist was, he could not estimate how dangerous she could be. “She won’t get loose without help.”

“Thank you.” Cyphus found Tiann by sound and his shoulder by touch.

“You won’t hurt her, right?” The witch seemed so small and vulnerable. Incapable of the level of power that had taken Cyphus’ eyes. His stomach and heart clenched in tandem and he had to turn away.

“Don’t you trust your old man? I told you, I just want to talk to her.” Cyphus moved closer, drawing Tiann’s gaze, and felt for the unconscious woman's face. His hand moved over the ropes, following them to the knots to check they were tight and would not come undone. “Dawn’s approaching. I can handle her from here. Why don’t you go home and get some rest? I’ll call you when I’m done.”

“I trust you, dad, but…” Guilt rode Tiann hard. “This isn’t right. There’s gotta be a better way than kidnapping.”

“I wish there were.” His father rounded on him, a hard edge of anger in his voice that softened almost instantly. Clumsily he found Tiann’s shoulders and gave the male an awkward hug. “You’re a good kid and you’ve got your mother’s heart. I couldn’t be more proud, but we don’t have time to play nice anymore. Your birthday is just around the corner and she may be the key to saving you.”

“I know, but I don’t like this.” Tiann felt sick with the knowledge he had broken Sisika’s trust. Drugging her, kidnapping her, and tying her up. There was no way she would ever forgive him for this, even if they had little options left. His twenty-seventh birthday was nearing and his father claimed Sisika’s magic could save him without the cost of anyone’s life.

For that he thought he could live with the guilt. He could bear Sisika’s wrath if it meant no lives would be lost to keep the curse from taking his own. 

“I know you don’t like this.” A gentle squeeze and then Cyphus released him. “I wouldn’t have asked you to do this if it wasn’t the best chance we had. Go. Get some rest. I’ll explain everything to her.”

“Goodnight, dad.” On his way out of the warehouse he slowed as his father’s most trusted friends headed towards the blackout back room Sisika was in. Daimons far older than he was and the only ones his father trusted at his back other than Tiann, especially now that Sisika had blinded him.

An accident, Cyphus had told Tiann when he stumbled into his son’s house late last night - severely injured and in intense pain. It had been hard for the daimon to talk as Tiann treated his wounds, but he conveyed his story bit by bit between grunts of pain. He had been attacked by a Dark Hunter a while back and a woman had stumbled into the fight. Misunderstanding the situation, she had gotten into the middle and, with some sort of drawing, had used a mighty power that had forced Cyphus away.

He had spotted her that night and had wished to speak with her, to clear up the misunderstanding, but had accidentally startled her. He had no time to react to her quick drawing and the symbol she had drawn was the last thing he saw before her magic had taken his eyes and left agony to make its home in his empty sockets.

Tiann had been shocked to hear Sisika’s name fall from his father’s lips. The description of the woman had matched his newest tattoo artist as the very same witch his father had met.

The date had been Tiann’s idea, but the ending had been his father’s. He thought the daimon was resting and recovering from his wounds, but Cyphus had overheard and approached. He apologised to Tiann for his heinous suggestion but claimed he did not know any other way to get her to listen to him, especially after the terrible accident.

“She might think I’m angry at her.” Cyphus lamented as he touched the bandage over his eyes. “I’m not, of course. I know it was just an accident. I’m sure she’s a sweet girl, but she might act without thought again.”

Sisika’s phone chimed, drawing Tiann’s attention to her purse. Leaning over the centre he pulled the bag into his lap and hesitated at the thought of prying into her personal belongings. Another chime before it began to ring pushed away his hesitation. There was someone, likely the friend she claimed to be staying with, worrying about her well-being. He opened the purse and searched for the phone. He found it in time to see the screen switch to say the call had been missed.

Her phone was locked with a pincode, barring Tiann entry. With a soft curse he tried anything he thought she might use. Her name, her birthday, her mom’s name, but none of them gave him access. On a whim he tried her phone number and the phone sang a ditty as it opened up to allow him access to her inbox.

Jealousy rose in his veins at the display name of the sender of the texts, someone clearly worried about her well-being. He had no place, no right to feel jealous. Not after Sisika had made her lack of interest in him clear. She only saw him as a friend. After tonight, he thought with a sigh, she would probably not even see him as a friend anymore.

Tiann began to reply to whoever ‘Sexy Grump’ was when a scream nearly made him drop the phone. High pitched and sharpened by pain, he barely recognised it as Sisika’s voice.

Cyphus had lied to him. Stark horror immediately followed by a guilt that flayed his heart when he realised the truth. His father had betrayed him, had lied when he said Sisika would not be hurt, and in turn his own betrayal became an even more vicious sin than it already had been.

Worse yet, he could not help. Cyphus and his friends were fighters, honed by years of battle. Even if his father was blind, Tiann could not fight against the rest of them. He had never gone through they training they had, preferring a life of peace and artistry. 

Tiann’s eyes dropped to the phone in his lap. Sisika’s phone. Inputting her passcode again, he erased the message he had been typing up. There was no sounds coming from the warehouse and he feared what that might mean for Sisika. Forcing his fingers to stop shaking, he typed in the address of the warehouse followed by a plea for help.

[From: Sexy Grump] Who is this?

[To: Sexy Grump] theres 6 of them fighters

[To: Sexy Grump] i know u hav no reason 2 trust but she needs help & i cant do anythin

[To: Sexy Grump] plz shes in danger and i think theyve already hurt her

[From: Sexy Grump] Watch. Tell me if more come or they move her.

That he could do. Tiann set the phone in his lap and started the car. If any of his father’s men came outside they would see he had not left yet and know that something was up. With the lights off he drove the car around the block, parking it alongside a neighboring building before climbing out to watch the warehouse. He would stay, as long as he had to, if this was how he could help her.

*

Remi knew there was a good chance the texts were a trap, but he still dressed for war. He tucked as many weapons onto his body as he could before he jumped in the car and took off. The GPS lead him into an ill-frequented part of town, filled with warehouses and shadows. A location that left a lot of nooks and crannies for an ambush and left plenty of room for more than six fighters.

Knowing their luck, which was not the greatest, six fighters meant six daimons. If the information could be trusted, he would have a difficult fight on his hands. If the information could not be trusted, he could be easily overwhelmed by larger numbers.

[From: Witch] no change & i dont hear anythin

It was not until he arrived that he thought to forward the address, alerting his sister and Acheron where he was and what he knew. He switched his phone to vibrate, palmed a knife, and set off towards the eerily silent warehouse. 

Trap or not, someone had Sisika and like hell was he going to let anyone hurt her as long as he still lived.

The door was locked, but old. A bit of forceful pressure was enough to pop it free of the frame and allow him entry. Shadows met Remi, mixed with the musky odour of stale air unaided by the clustered mess of rooms the warehouse had been converted into. Some form of office, if he had to wager a guess. It was the fresher scents that he cared about, giving him directions to follow through the labyrinthine, ill-designed mess.

Sisika’s scent was there, damped by an overly sweet chemical odor, but enough to pull him deeper into the warehouse. It grew stronger as he walked, the chemical odour fading and he paused as the path of scents split. Sisika’s scent continued, along with some others, to the left. A singular scent moved on alone ahead, to fresh to have been anyone who might have used the office during the daylight hours.

Realising the individual might rejoin the others and flank him, Remi took a detour down the hallway until the lone scent led him to a door left ajar. From within he could hear muttering and the sounds of something heavy being moved. If the door had locked from his side, the occupant might have been spared his wrath.

Instead the bear stalked inside. The blond male had his back to the door and little chance to react to the intrusion before Remi’s hand slapped back over the male’s mouth to muffle any sound he made as his blade slid in between ribs from behind. The daimon had no chance to fight back, bursting into dust and freeing Remi’s blade.

The bear turned and returned to the juncture. He had five more to kill and his woman to save.

The scents were getting stronger now, Sisika’s nearly overpowering his scenes and filling his head with red. He smelled blood before he heard her whimper and all reason left him. They had hurt her. They had hurt her and he was shifting to a bear even as he burst through the final door into the makeshift cafeteria of the warehouse offices. The first daimon went down quickly, claws ripping open his chest and turning him to dust. The second was faster, craftier, and his blade bit into Remi’s shoulder before he took a paw to the face that sent him sprawling across the room.

Two stood between him and Sisika, but he could see her past their shoulders. The healthy glow of her natural tan muted by the blood that coursed down her arms and over her chest. Her head hung low, but he could see the shaking rise and fall of her chest that let him know she still lived. The final daimon, eyes bandaged, rose from his chair at the sound. Blood still dripped from the knife in his hand.

The two closest daimons learned very quickly what would happen to them if they stood between a bear and his woman. He leapt on them, the weight of his ursulan body slapping bones, but it was his claws and teeth that did the damage to dust one and leave the other with one less limb and a devastating wound. Remi stepped on him on his way towards Sisika and her captor, crushing the man’s ribs on his way.

Only one left standing, but the eyeless daimon was no fool. He quickly put Sisika between himself and Remi, using her as a shield from the bloodlust driven bear. His knife touched her throat. She trembled, her body shaking like a leaf, and Remi could see the tears streaming down her face when the daimon yanked her hair back to make his stance clear.

“Don’t come any closer.” Cyphus pressed the blade in tighter and Sisika flinched as it nicked her delicate flesh. “One more step and the witch’s dead, got it? I may be blind but I can still fucking here so don’t even breath wrong.”

The shift back into his human form was painful, the need to kill hot upon him, but the position they were in was downright agonising. To be so close to Sisika, close enough to see the glazed darkness of her eyes, yet powerless to help her killed him.

“Let her go.” Remi’s hands balled into fists at his side and he swallowed back the emotions that threatened to choke them.

“Why would I go and do a fool thing like that?” He shook his head with a sign. “We’re cousins, of sorts, aren’t we? Just walk away now. This doesn’t have to get any uglier than it already is.”

“I can’t do that.” Not now. Not with her suffering. “I’m not leaving without her.”

“Then you can watch her die.” Cyphus nodded his head and something slammed into the back of Remi’s head. He went down to his knees, vision spotting, but before he could fully register what happened he felt something snap down over his throat. A collar and, given the buzz of electricity warm against his skin, one made to keep his kind trapped in one form. He tried to grab at hit, but the man who had assaulted him slapped cuffs on his wrist and wrenched them behind his back.

“R-Remi?” Finally coming back from the haze of pain she had been in, Sisika jerked in her seat and Cyphus yanked the blade away to prevent her from slitting her throat open. “Don’t hurt him! Don’t lay another fucking hand on him!”

“Or what?” Cyphus fisted her hair and yanked her back into place, the point of his knife coming to a rest on her cheek. “What are you going to do, witch? You’re nothing without your stupid little drawings.”

“Hell hath no fury!” She yanked on the ropes binding her, not caring that the blade bit into her cheek. “I’ll find a way to rip your balls off and shove them into your empty fucking eye sockets!”

“What a charmer.” Cyphus’ hand found her chin, gripping it hard as his blade moved to hover in front of her eye. “Maybe before I take your soul I’ll carve out your eyes. Wouldn’t that be fitting?”

“Wait, wait!” Remi felt sick at the terror on Sisika’s face as she froze in the daimon’s hold. “Let her go. I know where her things are, her magic books. Everything you’d need to have her power. Power that won’t fade in a few month’s time!”

“That’s awfully convenient.” Cyphus patted Sisika’s cheek. “You didn’t say anything about books, witchy. Almost like your little boyfriend’s lying to try to save your life. How sweet.”

“Actually, he’s not lying.” She winced when Cyphus’s knife returned to her throat. “I’ve got a box full of books and tools.”

“Then I don’t need both of you, do I?” He tilted his head and a sick smirk twisted his once handsome visage.

“Actually, you do.” Remi spoke quickly, trying to get to his feet at the unspoken threat but the daimon who had cuffed him slammed the hilt of a blade into his shoulder and dropped him again. “She doesn’t know where it is, but I do, and I’m the only one to get it. I don’t know how to work her shit, but she does. You need both of us.”

“You know what, I actually believe you.” Cyphus sounded less than thrilled by the idea. “But I’m not keeping a bear and a witch around. You two are trouble.”

“Force him to talk.” The daimon behind Remi finally spoke. “Cut off pieces of his girlfriend until he spills. Then we off him and keep her.”

“Oh, that’s brilliant Xaja, except I’d rather not cut off any pieces that might be useful later.” One of his hands slid down to find her collarbone. He aimed carefully between his fingers and slowly pressed the knife inward. Sisika’s scream turned his blood into ice and he surged forward only to be yanked backwards by the second daimon. “Remember, you come any closer and it’ll be worse for her.”

“You know what, that doesn’t work for me.” Acheron’s voice was a relief. He strolled into the room as if he owned the place. “Here’s the deal. You let them both go and I’ll take it easy on you.”

“Fuck.” Xaja must have recognised the tall male because he drew back. “I didn’t sign on for this shit. Cyphus, we need to go. Now.”

“But she’s in my hands!” Cyphus yanked the knife out of Sisika’s shoulder and pointed it towards the daimon. “Just take him down!”

“I’m not suicidal enough to go toe to toe against the leader of the Dark Hunters.” Xaja skirted further away from the gothic male, fishing the handcuffs key out of his pocket and tossing it to Remi. “I’m done with this. You’re on your own.”

A bolthole opened up and Xaja was quick to throw himself through. Remi felt for the key but felt the cuffs fall off his wrists without finding them. Sending a thankful look Acheron’s way he stood, eyes landing on Cyphus who was beginning to realise how screwed he really was.

“This isn’t over.” The knife slammed down again into Sisika’s chest before the blind daimon bolted for the portal that would take him back to Kalosis, where Acheron could not follow. Remi let him pass, darting instead to Sisika’s side. Acheron joined him a moment later, kneeling down to examine the damage done.

“Sisika, hang in there.” Remi accepted the knife Acheron handed him and sliced through the ropes binding her. Her skin felt frighteningly cold and clammy to his touch and she moaned weakly when he carefully lifted her from the chair. “Ash, can you help her?”

“I’ll send you two to Carson. He’ll do what he can to stop the bleeding.” He touched the hilt of the blade still within her and it disappeared. The wound closed slightly, but did not heal completely. “There isn’t anything more I can do. What happens after this is up to her.”

*

True to his word, Acheron had sent back to Sanctuary where Carson, the Native American hawk that functioned as both doctor and veterinarian for the injured that came to the limani, was waiting for them. One look at Remi’s face told the male he could not shake the bear. With a heavy sigh Carson pointed to the far side of the bed where Remi would be out of his way before getting to work.

Sisika was unconscious by the time Remi laid her down on the bed, but Carson was sure to give her something for the pain she was sure to feel. He did not flinch when Remi growled at him as he cut away her shirt. Her chest and arms were littered with wounds, a few of them being shallow, but none of them could be ignored. She had already lost a worrying amount of blood but the priority was cleaning the wounds and stopping the bleeding.

When Carson finally set down his medical tools, Sisika’s shallow breathing had steadied and her condition had stabilized. He tossed the bloodied gloves into the biohazard bin and dropped the dirty medical supplies into a bucket of to be cleaned later. He explained, as carefully as he could, that Sisika would likely be out for some time. Her wounds were not severe, but the culmination of them was enough to pose a serious threat.

“But she’ll be okay, right?” Remi reached for her hand and carefully picked it up. “She has to be okay.”

“I’m not going to lie to you.” Carson headed to the sink to wash his hands and splash his face with water. Not a good sign. “She’s lost a lot of blood before I could stop the bleeding and we don’t have what we need here to give her a transfusion. Even if I could, it’ll likely send her body into shock.”

“So what are you telling me?” He stared down at Sisika, feeling as if his world were shifting beneath his feet. “Carson, will she be okay?”

“To be honest, I don’t know. It’ll be touch and go for a bit.” Drying his hands off with a paper towel, he turned to face him. “I’ll have what I need for a transfusion tomorrow but this is one of those cases where her life’s in her own hands for the time being.”

Rotten luck, from nearly every angle he could look at it. 

Carson left, leaving Remi alone with Sisika, knowing the bear would not leave her side. There was no where else Remi wanted to be. He had to be there, to see the rise and fall of her chest, and know that she was safe. But seeing her in this state was bittersweet and had fear twisting his heart. Hurt, pale, and still cold to the touch.

“Sisika…” Remi reached to brush the hair away from her face. The need for her to open her eyes was strong, but he contented himself with the knowledge that she was there. It was strange to think he was afraid of getting attached to her, afraid a simple mistake would put her within sight but forever out of reach. Now he feared not have any more time with her. “I’ve got a lot to make up to you and a lot to tell you, so you better show us all how stubborn you are and not let this stop you. I can’t lose you. Not now, not ever. So, please… please be okay.”


	12. Crossroads

The night sky stretched on forever, unmarred by any sign of civilisation. There was no moon shining stars, but the stars twinkled their finest without the competition. The air was crisp and clean, like a field just after the rain. Yet the asphalt beneath Sisika’s feet spoke of people and progress. Like the points of a compass, the streets disappeared into the inky shadows of the horizon with no street signs to speckle or mark them.

Sisika knew she could not stay on the intersection. It was a transitory point, not a destination, and roads were made to be traversed. She turned in a slow circle to get a sense of direction, but all she gained was a sense that she was lost and forgetting something. She knew, without a doubt, that one of the roads would lead her to where she was supposed to be, but had no way of knowing which one led to her destination.

For that matter, she was not sure what her destination was.

“Sisika.” The voice was a whisper on the wind and the hand that touched her shoulder was just as cool as the night air. A wisp of a memory to make her shiver. “This isn’t how I wanted us to meet again.”

“This isn’t real.” Sisika squeezed her eyes shut. She knew that voice and knew that gentle hand. Twenty years could not erase the familiarity. All at once she felt like a young girl again and choked back the tears that threatened to spill. “You can’t be here…”

“But I am.” With a gentle touch she turned Sisika to face her and cupped the young woman’s face with her hands. Kate was every inch as beautiful as she had been before the cancer drained her, if not more. The stars themselves had fell from the sky to nestle in the wavy raven locks that spilled over her shoulders and down her back. Silk that shimmered with the purples dusk and deep blues of midnight draped over her body, cinched with jewelry that was neither golden or silver, but something mixed in between.

Rochelle had always told Sisika that she was nearly the spitting image of Kate. The idea had flattered her as a child who had idolised her mother to the very end. She had donned her mother’s dresses, tripped about in Kate’s sandals, and had imagined she would grow to be just as beautiful as Kate had been.

In the years after her mother’s death her eyes had skimmed past the pictures adorning the house. She allowed her mother’s face to grow soft and fuzzy in her memories

It was surreal to be facing Kate. Something like staring in a mirror at a fun house, she faced a reflection that was her and yet not, breathtakingly perfect in a way beyond human possibility.

“You can’t be here. You died.” Sisika drew back from the vision and rubbed at her eyes as if she could erase the image in front of her. “Oh god, does that mean I’m dead? Did that fuckface kill me?”

“No, love. You’re at the crossroads one of many.” Kate reached for Sisika’s hands and brought them to her heart. Impossibly she could feel the steady beat beneath the surface of her mother’s cool skin. “This is the crossroads between life and death.”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Sisika heard jerked to take in the innocuous landscape before landing on her mother again. The sense that she was forgetting something grew stronger, nearly drowning her, but her head ached when she tried to remember. “Mom, what the hell are you talking about.”

“You’re dying.” The pain in Kate’s eyes told her it was the truth even though Sisika felt fine. “Being on the brink, at the crossroads, gives us a chance to talk, but we don’t have long. You’ll have to leave here soon and there’s so much I still need to tell you, so much you need to know.”

“Whoa, okay, fuck.” She swallowed and nodded. “Fine, get talking. I’m listening.”

“First, I’m so sorry for leaving you the way I did.” The guilt in Kate’s eyes did not make sense. It was not her fault. “I didn’t have much of a choice. He was getting suspicious and… That’s another story for when we don’t have to be so quick. Just know I would have stayed if I could. With you and Rocky.”

“Rochelle. Dad’s fully transitioned now.” The smile she gave her was pained. There was so much her mother had missed out on. “And she misses you.”

“She always did talk about transitioning. I’m glad she was finally able to go through with it.” Kate’s eyes shimmered, stars caught within the tears that filled them. “I wish I could’ve been there for her. To help her through it all.”

“Yeah, well, she stole your dresses and slays in them.” The two shared a sad, salt-flavoured laugh over it.

“I bet she does.” Kate released one of Sisika’s hands to wipe the tears from her cheeks like she used to before the sickness took her strength. “Don’t cry, baby girl, or you’ll make me cry too.”

“Easier said than done.” Sisika sucked in a breath and tried to hold herself together. She needed to stay strong.

“I know, but you can get through this.” Her mother’s gaze slid past her, towards the darkness before returning with a seriousness that settled like a ball of concrete in Sisika’s stomach. “Listen closely, my dear. The stars will guide you out of her, back to the mortal world, but you’ll have more crossroads you’ll need to face - some you may not see as literally as this one.”

“Right. Follow the stars.” She could do that, but the sound of more crossroads left her uneasy. “What do I do?”

“Remember that you are my daughter. My magick is yours.” Kate cupped her cheek, keeping her in place with a look. “I know you’ve been denying it, running away from it, but you’ll need that gift soon.”

“Mom…”   
“Don’t ‘mom’ me in that tone.” Kate pressed her lips together sternly. “You will need your magick.”

“My magick isn’t strong enough to help me. It only makes things worse.” Sisika drew back from her mother and wrapped her arms around herself. “It couldn’t save anyone I love and it sure as hell isn’t going to help me now. It’s what got me into this shit.”

“Everything happens for a reason.” With a sigh her mother pulled her into her arms, squeezing her tightly until Sisika felt something within her ease. She returned the hug and buried her face into her mother’s neck. After all these years, she still smelled the same. Rain and roses. “You’re stronger than you know, Sissy. You’re my daughter. If you fully embraced yourself, what you really are, few could contend against your magicks. Have faith, my love. In yourself, in the magic, and in me.”

“I’ll try.” That was the most she could offer.

“You better.” Kate gave her another squeeze before loosening her hold enough to look her in the face. “The threat you face now is small, but is part of the crossroads you’ll face. What you choose to do could set you on any one of many paths - some of which will lead you back here - for the final time.”

“That’s grim. That’s hella fucking grim.” Sisika scrunched up her nose and moved a hand away from her mother to rub at her collarbone. The ghost of an ache started welling up beneath her skin. “So I make the wrong choice, I’ll die. That’s peachy. What a marvelous bit of news. Any hint about what choices I should make?”

“Nature of the beast, my dear. In the end, every choice is a life or death one.” Kate’s hands came to rest on Sisika’s shoulders. “I know you’ll make the right decisions. You’re gifted. Not just with my magic, but with your clever mind, your art, and love. Hold onto those gifts and they will help guide you.”

“Hekate!” They both flinched at the voice that boomed from every direction, somehow distant and close without seeming to be either.

“That’s our cue.” With a heavy sigh Kate pulled Sisika back into her arms and pressed a kiss to her temple. “I love you, Sisika.”

“Wait, no!” Sisika fisted her hands in her mother’s hair, the stars almost painfully hot against her skin. After so many years without her, the idea of saying goodbye again only brought up the pain of losing her mother. There was so much her mother had missed, so much she wanted to still tell her. So little time left. “You can’t. You can’t go. I can’t lose you again. Mom, mom, please. Don’t leave me.”

“Honey, you know I’d love to stay.” Kate’s hands slid over Sisika’s hair in a gentle caress, soothing and bittersweet. “I’d give anything to stay with you and Rochelle, but my place was elsewhere - just as yours is elsewhere.”

“Shut up.” Sisika squeezed her eyes shut and breathed in her mother’s scent, committing the moment to memory. If she had to let go again, she would not do it without sealing this stolen moment between life and death away within her heart. “I’m going to miss you.”

“And I’ll miss you.” Kate and Sisika parted, tears wetting both their cheeks. She brushed aside Sisika’s with a gentle hand before plucking one of the stars free from her hair. The clasp that draped over her fingers was made of the same silver-golden material Kate’s jewelry was crafted from and felt light against her skin. The star settled against her chest as a gentle weightless heat.

“Hekate!” The voice called again.

“I’m coming! Hold your damn horses!” Kate rolled her eyes and gave Sisika’s cheek a kiss. “Stay strong, darling, and remember what I’ve told you.”

Like a whisper on the wind, her mother was there one minute and gone the next. The stars themselves seemed dimmer for the loss. Alone, Sisika touched the faintly glowing warmth over her heart and tried to be strong. She could not stay here and wallow in her grief. The stars were already collecting, marking the road she needed to take. 

“I love you too, mom.” With a heavy heart, Sisika turned to follow the stars.

*

Sisika had three thoughts in rapid succession when she opened her eyes. The first was that she was starving and could really go for a double bacon cheeseburger. The second thought was that a bathroom would be a great place to visit. The third thought was that her body should hurt much more than it did after what she had been through.

Her heart stopped in her chest and she held her breath as she bolted upright. She only breathed again when she realised she was no longer in the warehouse and Evil Fabio was nowhere in sight. Better yet, she could tell from the sharp chemical odour and the obnoxiously clean state of the room that she was in medical room.

It was the sight of Remi that allowed her to fully relax and truly feel safe. He was slumped over in the chair beside her bed, using his arms as a pillow as he rested. Leaning forward she ran her fingers through his hair, smoothing it away from his face. He stirred beneath her touch.

Memories of what had happened in the warehouse were a fuzz in her mind, twisted from the pain and the haze of chloroform. The last thing she remembered was her date with Tiann, his apology before everything had gone dark. Then came the pain and Evil Fabio’s cruel smile. 

He had hurt her. That was why she felt as if her body should be complaining more. Her eyes slid away from Remi to the bandages which wound around her arms. Beneath the thin smock she wore she could feel bandages along her shoulder, where she distantly remember being stabbed.

Why did she not hurt more? She pressed against the bandage on her chest and the ache deepened, just a touch, but did not hurt like she thought a stab wound should. They must have given her the good shit.

Turning back to Remi, she pressed her hand to her mouth. He had showed up. How the grouch had known she needed help she did not know, but he had showed up. No. She frowned as her mind cleared further. It was not Remi, but it was. A bear had torn through the door, had roared in anger, only to turn into Remi.

Had that really happened? 

Sisika would have dismissed it completely if it were not for the warm glow beneath her shirt. A star that hung around her neck. 

She could deal with this. 

“Should’ve guessed you were a literal grumpy bear.” She leaned in close and gave his cheek a gentle pat. “Hey, Remi? Remi, wakey wakey.”

Remi bolted upright fast enough to nearly catch her chin. Blue eyes locked on her and in the next moment she was nearly pulled out of the bed and into his lap. His arms wound around her, cautious of her wounds, as he cradled her to his chest. She had little choice but to let him nuzzle into her hair and, honestly, she wanted nothing more to just stay there.

Well, she still wanted a that bacon cheeseburger and the visit to the loo. 

“Hey, can cuddle time wait a minute?” She gave his head an awkward pat. “And can you do something for me?”

“Anything.” Remi slowly released her, reluctant to let her go. His eyes moved over her face as if memorising her image. “Just name it.”

“Point me to the nearest bathroom and then take your sexy ass off to fetch me food.” She held up two fingers and tapped his cheek with them. “I’m starving my ass of here and I’m rather fond of it so… Double bacon cheeseburger. No onions, extra mustard. Oh, and fries!”

“Well, I did say anything.” His arms shifted, one sliding beneath her legs and another under her arms to lift her with him as he stood. He set her down gently hands lingering on her hips. “Sisika, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“It can wait.” She planted her hands on his chest and gave him the slightest push. “Bathroom. Food. Pretty please? With sugar on top?”

“Depends on what kind of sugar you’re talking about here.” The half smile he gave her made her heart skip a beat, stirring up a different kind of hunger.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” As much as she wanted to stay, to follow the stirrings of heat within her, her stomach and bladder had other ideas. Jerkwads. Besides, there was a lot they needed to talk about. “Go get me my burger and you’ll find out.”

After dealing with her business, Sisika stood in front of the window and undid the meticulous work of whoever wrapped her wounds. Clean gauze gave way to bloodied padding stuck to her skin. She hesitated for a second, gripping it before closing her eyes and yanking it off.

There was no pain. Her eyes snapped open, meeting her wild expression in the mirror before she dropped her eyes to her arm. She was quick to remove more gauze and padding, stripping the white and bloodied cloth from her body. Against all logic and reason her arms were nearly completely healed. 

“What the fuck.” She pulled the thin tunic up and over her head, but hesitated to remove the bandaging that criss-crossed over her chest and shoulder. Blood spotted where she had been stabbed, but even now the ache was a mild irritant at best. Swallowing her reservations, she unwound it and let the mess of white and red fall into the sink with the rest.

While her arms were nearly healed, the stab wounds were still ugly and red. Using the mirror as a guide she poked at it, marvelling at how healed it was. Had she lost more time that she realised? No, that could not be it. When she overslept she always felt as if she had a hangover, but her head felt fine.

Her eyes dropped a few inches to the necklace that hung around her neck, resting just above her breasts. It pulsed, warm and surreal. Like it was truly a star plucked from the sky or taken from those adoring her mother’s hair and hooked on a chain.

“Ahh fuck it. My life’s already crazy. Just go with it.” She told her reflection as she pulled the tunic back over her head.  Collecting the mess of gauze and padding she threw it into the waste bin and gave her hands another wash before leaving the bathroom.

She had a man who might possibly be a bear to find and a cheeseburger to eat. Plus Remi totally deserved a kiss, at the very least, for being her hero. Two if he got her order right. 


	13. Want

It was no surprise that Sisika was ravenous. She tore into the food Remi brought her pausing only to suck down some of the iced coke he had thought to bring her. She had been unconscious for nearly two full days and he would have been worried if she had not had an appetite. Carson had warned him the female might be hungry and thirsty upon awakening and advised him to let her eat but to keep an eye to make sure she did not overdo it.

For someone who had been in the hands of their sadistic enemy and tortured, Sisika looked good. Surprisingly damn good. The shallowest of the cuts, the nicks on her throat, were gone. No sign of them remained although her arms were a different story. The gashes that had littered her arms, some of which needed stitches, were now nearly completely healed and the scarring faded. A few may yet to leave a scar, but they all had healed fairly well.

Better than it should.

No human Remi knew could have healed so quickly no matter how fast they bounced back from an incident.

Things had been touch and go for Sisika because of the blood loss and the wait for a transfusion, but once she got the blood she needed Carson had been confident she would recover. However, the doctor had showed concern over the wounds. He had changed the bandages twice a day and emphasis they stay clean to reduce her risk of infection.

“Her shoulder is the greatest concern.” Carson had said as he clipped the gauze in place to keep her shoulder wrapped. Such small wounds, but they had gone deep and had sliced through important ligaments and muscles. His eyes strayed to Remi before snapping back to his work. “If they open up, call me immediately. When she wakes, make sure she goes easy on it. She’ll only recover partial use of the arm if it’s allowed to heal and she agrees to physical therapy.”

Sisika moved as if she had not been in danger of losing partial mobility of her arm. She favoured it a little, Remi noticed, but appeared otherwise unbothered by the injury.

There was also the appearance of the glimmery light that hung from a delicate chain to rest above the swell of her breasts that rose questions. Remi could not be absolutely certain she had not had it before, but he did know it was new. It smelled off, faintly smoky, and he could have sworn he felt a slight pulse of power from it.

Plenty of questions whirled around in the silence punctuated by the clink of ice as she drank or the crunch of a particularly well-crisped fry.

“I know I nearly died.” Sisika spoke once she had finished her burger and slowed down on her fries. She tapped one against the edge of the carton they came in with a wistful expression on her face. Breaching the subject was difficult and the words felt clumsy in her mouth. “I met my mom, Kate, on the crossroads.”

“Well, you have been through a lot.” Remi offered her a half smile.

“She had a lot to say and a lot more she didn’t have time to say.” Her hand went to the glimmering star and brushed against its heat. “Gave me some advice and this. Also, I think she might be a goddess.”

“What?” Now that caused Remi to sit up a little bit straighter.

“There was a voice.” Sisika closed her eyes as she tried to remember what the male had sounded like, but the cadence of it fell away as she grasped for it. “I don’t know who he was. I never saw him, but mom didn’t seem fond of him. Snapped at him, bless her, but he called her Hekate.”

Hekate, the Greek goddess of the night, witchcraft, magic, and the crossroads. 

“I can’t say I’m surprised. It makes sense.” She continued as she dropped her fry in favour of drawing on the condensation. When her hand stilled the coke slowly rose, refilling the cup from an unseen source until a dewy drop of water broke the symbol she had drawn. “My other mom can’t do stuff like this. They always did say I wasn’t an ordinary girl, but I always thought they were just being moms, you know?”

“Okay, so you might be a demigod.” Remi rubbed his palm against his five-o-clock shadow as the implications of Sisika’s bloodline meant. Did the daimon know about her heritage? He doubted it, but if the soul-sucking fiend got a hold of Sisika’s soul there would be hell to pay. The last thing they needed was a daimon juiced up on demigoddess. “We’ll have to keep you out of that asshole’s hands, but this means we have a better shot of winning against him and his buddies.”

“Yeah, I guess but…” Sisika’s eyes dropped to her hands. They seemed so normal, decorated with faint lines that told a story of years lived and years to come. She squeezed her hands closed and her wild eyes sought out his. “I have to use my magick. Mom made that clear enough but… I don’t know if I can. She says I’m stronger than I know but… What if it’s not enough? What if it fails me again?”

“Your mom wouldn’t steer you in the wrong direction.” As contrary as gods were and as little as Remi trusted them, he felt as if he could have faith in her mother. Everything Sisika had told him about her had painted a woman of deep love.

“Shit, I don’t know what to do.” Sisika leaned back in her chair and let loose a miserable grown. The weight of reality, the weight of her doubts caught up to her and threatened to reverse gravity on her meal. “Even if I could stop that fucker, I have no job now! I can’t go back there and, ugh, I’ve got bills and rent and I don’t have enough in my savings to cover that.”

“Sisika, breathe.” Her breath was coming faster than normal, eyes unfocused as her words jumbled into one another. Remi left his chair to kneel at her side and grab her hands. “It’ll be okay.”

“I wasn’t worried about money shit since I was positive I’d die but now that there’s a chance I can survive all this and I can’t go back to Inked Bones!” Her chest tightened and her lungs complained from the lack of air. “Fuck, this is so fucked. I don’t wanna go back to Texas. I like it here but I don’t know what to do. Shit, shit, fuck.”

“Everything will be okay.” Remi freed one hand from her bruising grip to gently tug her head down between her knees. His hand slid from her neck to gently stroke her back and try to ease the tension he felt there. “Breathe, baby. I’ve got you. I’m right here. You’re not alone in any of this.”

At first she could not feel his hands. Not the one she gripped as if it were here only lifeline nor the one that spread warmth over her back. At first only cold terror gripped her, squeezing her heart and freezing her lungs. Blood rushed through her veins, deafening her to everything but the unsteady lurching beat of her heart.

Bit by bit, her senses came back to her. The warmth of Remi’s touch started defrosting the ice. The smooth, deep cadence of his voice brushed away the sound of her heart and guided it into a steadier rhythm. Bit by bit, Remi grounded her from the wild-freefall that had seized her and the iron grip of anxiety began to release her.   
“I’m sorry.” Sisika forced herself to loosen her hold on his hand, her knuckles aching from gripping him so tightly. She avoided his gaze as she rubbed the blood back into his fingers. With the fall of anxiety rose the embarrassment at herself for having the small panic attack. It tied her tongue up and made her face heat. “I’m sorry. I… sorry. I keep troubling you.”

“Shh, it’s okay.” As steady as ever, Remi’s hand continued to slide over his back. Gentle, warm, and patient, she could not help but grow relaxed beneath his touch. “You don’t need to apologise. After everything you’ve been through, anyone would have a panic attack.”

“Yeah I guess.” Sisika sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I fucking knew a date with Tiann was a bad idea, but noooooo. I had to be an immature assbrain and go.”

“You went on a date.” Remi swallowed thickly at the news and rush of emotions that came with it. He had not known how the eyeless daimon had gotten his hands on Sisika. It was one of the questions he had planned to ask after she had ate her fill and had some time to decompress.

“Yeah, with Tiann, my boss.” Sisika straightened up to take a drink from her soda and made a face of disgust. “Bad fucking move on my part. Oh my god, I don’t think I’ve ever done something so stupid.”

He pulled away from her and got to his feet on the pretense of throwing her burger wrapper and empty ketchup packages. Restless energy put him off kilter, as if the ground itself had turned, and his instincts urged him to react. Sisika had left whatever hole she had hidden herself away in to go on a date. A date with another man. The clear regret she showed did little to ease his bristling emotions.

Had he misread her attraction to him or had he screwed up so badly she moved on?

“Remi?” Sisika frowned at his back, reading the lines of tension that held him stiff. Even though he had his back to her and she could not see his face, she knew his lips were pressed in a narrow line that barely suppressed a growl or biting words.

His mood had completely soured.

“Wait a minute!” Realisation had her sitting up straighter. “Are you jealous?”

“No!” The denial came to quickly, too sharply to be believed and Remi knew it. He groaned in aggravation and turned to her. A hint of colour tinted his cheeks red, the blush becoming enough to make Sisika have to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. “Fine, yes. I’m fucking jealous. Happy?”

“Uh, abso-fucking-lutely.” Sisika left her seat and crossed over to him. Remi tried to sidestep her, aiming to get to the door an escape, but grabbing his shirt was enough to stop him. “I could bask in this, but you should know I only said yes to that asshole because I was mad at you and hurt by the whole ‘mistake’ thing. Tiann never had a chance and he sure as fuck doesn’t now that I know he’s an Evil Fabio. Those blond fuckheads are so not my type.”

“What?” Remi’s heart and mind did a little jump. Hope flared anew in his chest even as his mind stuttered to catch up with her revelations. 

“Oh yeah, my ex-boss is Evil Fabio’s son.” Sisika released his shirt when she felt he would not run and smoothed the wrinkles out beneath her palms. The warm muscles underneath twitched slightly and her mind went in a different, far more pleasant direction, remembering the feel of his chest pressed against her own. “Cyphus, which is apparently dickhead Evil Fabio’s name, had Tiann chloroform and kidnap me. On the bright side, I now know what Tiann is, even if I have to quit the best damn job I’ve ever had.”

“So it’s safe to say no second date for him.” Remi’s hands flexed at his side. He was hard pressed to keep them there and not scoop her up into his arms to kiss her until she forgot other men existed. “Next time I say something so damned stupid, how about you just  punch me instead of going on a revenge date.”

“Sure about that, grumpy?” Sisika raised her fist between them and lightly boxed his chin. “Texan girls hit hard.”

“I’m sure.” He caught her fist before she could lower it and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. Sisika felt the warmth of the affection action settled in her heart and sizzle through her veins. “As long as your eyes are on me and only me, I can take anything you throw at me.”

“Whoa.” How was a girl supposed to react to that? “Um, I’m not entirely sure how to take that.”

“I’m not the greatest at this kind of thing.” Words did not come easily to him on a normal bases but he was downright rubbish when it came to emotional stuff. Between the raging instincts and the old griefs, it all twisted him into knots. Still he swallowed and tried again. “I don’t want you to look at any other guy. It’s selfish, I know, but I want to be it for you.”

“Oh…” Sisika’s heart leapt to her throat as she caught his meaning. It was not hard. The intense way he looked at her, anticipating her response. His admitted jealousy over her ill-fated date with Tiann. She would have to be a complete fool not to connect the dots.

He wanted her. Not just wanted her. He wanted to be with her.

“Well?” When she did not answer his hand left hers only to find her hips, the storm of emotions plain to see in his blue eyes.

“Well,” Remi hung on her words and his grip tightened on her hip. He braced himself for rejection just as much as he did for the opposite. “Say it, Remi. Make it perfectly clear to me what you’re wanting. Otherwise I’ll go back to my fries.”

“Witch.” The word was a soft growl as he pulled her flush against her, recognising the game she was playing. The smirk on her face told him everything. She knew exactly what he meant, but this was her way of having a little fun at his expense. Prolonging his wait. Fair enough, he deserved far worse. “I want you, Sisika. Under my tongue, in my bed, singing my name as I make you come. I want to devour you in the best way possible and give you everything in the world you could ever want. I want to wake up with you in my arms every fucking morning. Can I make myself any clearer?”

“Yeah, if you wanted to make me combust.” Sisika bit her lip. The heat of his body and words stoked the embers within her to a fever pitch. It brought back the delicious memory of his hands and mouth on her and turned her mind to fuzz. At the same time she felt the ground beneath her disappearing now that she knew how much he wanted from her. “I don’t know if I can do all that. Relationships are… well, they scare the shit out of me. After Rick and Luc… I don’t think I can handle another heartbreak.”

“Sisika, beautiful.” Remi’s lips touched hers, lightly and non-pressuring and all the sweeter for it. “The last thing I’ll ever do is break your heart. I get how scary this is, believe me. It scares the shit out of me too, but I’m willing to take my chances. You’re worth it, even if it doesn’t work out. I’d rather have a few moments with you than a lifetime of wondering what might’ve happened if I didn’t give it a shot.”

“Damnit, Remi.” Sisika curled her arms around his neck. “What kind of Texan would I be if I let some NOLA boy out-courage me. You’re on.”

“Only you could make it sound like some kind of dare.” His laugh was music to her ears, pushing away the fear pricked at the edge of her thoughts. His expression sobered as he looked down at her. “If you don’t stop me now I’m taking you back to my room and finishing what we started in your flat.”

“Why the hell would I stop you?” Sisika stole a kiss and nipped his lower lip. They both shivered when he groaned, the sound erotic and heated. “Because that sounds like a damned good idea.”

“Not when my woman’s injured.” Remi’s self control was fraying rapidly and Sisika only made it harder for him to resist. “You’re supposed to take it easy. Carson said-”

“I don’t give a shit what he said.” Her hand left his neck and dipped between them to cup his growing erection. His concern for her well-being in face of the clear, physical evidence of his desire only made her need more. “I feel just fine and I’d feel even better if we went back to your room. I wanna start this relationship off with a bang.”

*

Remi’s room was cozy. Larger than hers back in the flat and larger than the guest room that had been appointed for her during her stay at the Peltier house, but it had a bit of a cluttered feel. There were a few articles of clothing scattered around, tossed off and left to wherever they landed. The king sized bed set against the wall, lined up with windows covered with thick curtains, was neatly made with plain grey bedding. End tables lined either side of the bed, one with a lamp and the other having an alarm clock.

The room, though clearly comfortable, was a bit impersonal. Sisika took in the sight of it, eyes moving over the creamy off-white walls and thought it would look far better with a splash of colour to give it a warmer vibe. 

“What are you thinking, Witch?” Remi asked as he brushed the hair away from her neck. His lips met the curve there as his arms wound around her waist.

“That your room needs some colour.” She leaned back against him, basking in the warmth of his hold and enjoying the erotic feel of his erection pressing against her rear. There was a primal sort of power in eliciting such a reaction and she found herself grinning as she rolled her hips back against him. “More presently, I’m thinking that dresser of yours is at just the right height. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“Really?” One of his hands slipped higher to cup her breast through the thin tunic she wore. The other hand slipped past the waistband of her shorts and panties to cup her mound and guide her hips against his. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

“Yessss.” The word was dragged out of her as his middle finger slipped between her nether lips to stroke her. She could imagine it clearly. Her up on her toes, hips raised to be flush with hips. The stroke of his hands over her rear, up her back, and in her hair as he worked her over. Yup, she would definitely like that.

“Good, I’ll keep that in mind.” Remi bit at her neck, soothing the spot with his tongue and a kiss before releasing her. His hands found her back and gave her a gentle push towards the bed. Sisika found herself facedown on his blankets on the comfortable bed. Wiggling onto her back she stuck her tongue out at him in retaliation for the push. The sass she was about to unleash on him dried up at the sight of his bare, muscled chest.

“Damn, boy.” Sisika whistled softly in open appreciation. His chest had a light dusting of blonde hair a shade or two darker than his hair. It formed a trail past his abs to the appetising V that disappeared into his jeans. Jeans that were tented by a sizeable erection. 

“Yeah, yeah…” He dropped his shirt and bent over the bed, crawling up and stealing a kiss that stole her breath away. “You do know you can do more than just stare. I’m all yours, after all.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice.” She traced the dips and lines of his abs, running her fingers through his chest hair. They kissed as she explored Remi’s exposed flesh, tongue and lips meeting in a heady tussle for dominance neither was willing to give up. He held himself still, propped up as he was, letting her set the pace now that he had her in his bed.

When Sisika walked her fingers down to his button, she revelled in the way his muscles twitched and he groaned against her lips. She broke the kiss so she could hear more as she undid his button and zipper to release his erection. He collapsed onto his elbows with a low moan when her hand closed around his shaft. 

She took the same time and care to stroke him as she had exploring. His head fell to the crook of her neck, his breath quickening as she slowly worked his length. He liked it when her thumb brushed the head, something she made note of, but he really liked it when she rotated her hold and flexed her grip. The sound he made when she first tried that corkscrew grip went through her like lava.

“Sisika,” Remi’s voice was deep and his grip firm when he caught her wrist to still her hand. “Enough of that or you’ll have to wait even longer for the main course.”

“Don’t want that to happen.” She waited until he released her hand and gave him one last stroke, collecting a bit of precum from the tip and bringing it to her lips to taste him. Salty with a touch of sweetness and distinctively him.

“God, don’t do that.” Eyes on her fingers, he bit his lip at the sight of her tongue swiping over the digits to clean off the moisture she had gathered.

“I do what I want.” Sisika gave her fingers one last like, though unnecessary, to watch the heat in his eyes grow. He shifted and she scooted back on the bed, waving her finger to stop him. “Uh uh. Wait one second.”

It was only when he stopped that she reached down and pulled the tunic up and over her head. She playfully flung the fabric at his face and he laughed as he caught it and tossed it aside. Remi held back, watching as she ran her hands over her body, brushing her fingertips against her nipples. He actually whimpered when her lands slid over her stomach to the waistband of her shorts.

The power was unbelievable.

It was a bit awkward to shimmy off her shorts and panties, but Remi moved in to help. His eyes remained on her face as he took over tugging off her clothing. She lifted her hips to ease his way and soon enough he chucked that off to the side. This time when he moved forward she did nothing to stop him. Their lips bet as he settled his weight on top of her, pressing his hips into the apex of his thighs where she burned for him The anticipation of it was more than enough to have her engine at a full rev.

“You sure about this?” Remi spelled the question out against her skin, tracing it with his kisses and his hands up and down her arms. She could not be more sure about what she wanted even if he was not slowly thrusting against her, sliding his length through her slickness and bumping her clit with every forward stroke. 

The man was far too sexy for his own good.

“Fuck, Remi, I’m sure as hell.’’ She swung a leg up and pushed his jeans down further. With a chuckle he pulled away, just long enough to get rid of the denim before he was on her again.

No longer hesitant, Remi’s mouth was on her throat and collarbones, suckling and nipping marks into her skin. His hand went to position his shaft, slicking it further before she felt the slight pressure of him at her entrance. A moment later the breath was knocked out of her lungs as he filled her completely with one forceful stroke.

It had been a while since she last had someone other than herself in bed with her. She had almost forgotten how good it felt to have the weight of a person pinning her down or the fullness of a man fully sheathed inside of her. Especially one as perfectly endowed as Remi.

“That’s my girl.” The words were a ragged moan against her skin as he slowly withdrew only to sink in again. He started a slow pace, both of them getting used to the intensity of the sensations.

Sisika ran her hands over his arms and curled around his shoulders. Beneath the skin she felt his muscles move, his back flexing with each thrust. Her hips rose to meet his, urging him on, and soon head her gasping as he quickened his pace. Fingernails digging into his shoulders, Remi muttered encouragement as he hooked an arm beneath her hips to lift her a bit higher.

A slight shift angle, but one that sent her into overdrive. Every thrust felt like it hit its target, heightening her pleasure and quickly putting him at the top of her short list of lovers.

Unable to reach her mouth, or unwilling to stifle the sounds she made, Remi’s mouth moved over her breasts. He caught her nipple between his teeth, dragged his tongue against the sensitive buds. His nails dug into her hip, the other hand fisting the bedding as his thrusts became harder and faster. 

She could feel the tension coiling tighter, her pleasure mounting, and all she could do was breathlessly beg for more in response to his bliss deepened coos. He gave her what she asked for, quickening his pace or thrusting harder.

True to his word, he made her sing when she came, and followed shortly afterwards. With a keening moan that was music to her ears, she could feel the length of him twitch and the heat of his seed as he released. 

“My Sisika,” Remi sighed as he rolled over on his side to not crush her beneath his weight, careful not to pull out. Enjoying the feeling of still being connected, Sisika snuggled closer and pressed lazy kisses against his collarbones. “Are you okay?”

“Mhmmm?” She shifted to peer up at him. The afterglow was still thrumming through her veins, making her drowsy and content. “Yeah, I’m good. Reeeeeal good.”

“Good.” A smile spread over his lips before he dipped his head to kiss her. Sweet and lingering, they shared breaths before settling down more comfortably. One of his arms left her, only for a moment, to yank the blanket over them.

Sleep found her, warm and sweet, in the arms of her lover.


End file.
